A new girl
by Literature and Love
Summary: Hogiwara Airi was a shy girl who usually enjoyed staying in her corner. However, she also had a passion for basketball. Could her love for this sport be the one thing that helps her get on the Touou Academy basketball team and play by Aomine's side?
1. Chapter 1

Ah, autumn. The most wonderful time of the year. The colorful leaves rained down on students as they chatted happily. It was back to school for Touou Academy. The second years were now third years and the first years were now second years.

Momoi was skipping happily alongside Aomine, who was looking gloomy. The two had spent a good half of the vacations studying, due to the fact Aomine still needed to catch up on a few things. His parents had even threatened to cut him from any source magazines – not to mention keeping him from touching a basketball. So he had reluctantly agreed to let his childhood friend tutor him.

Now, he found it quite useful, for he had had to take a test to pass to second year. And, thanks to all this hard work, he had actually succeeded.

A few people waved at them on the way. Momoi returned the gesture while Aomine ignored them.

When they arrived in front of their class, they noticed an unfamiliar person standing there. With shoulder length brown hair, glass-covered hazel eyes and fair skin, she must have been 5 foot 7. Her school uniform was all too big for her skinny form, and hid her slightly developed chest as well as her curves. Earphones were tucked in her ears, connected to an MP3 player. To top it off, a book was held tightly in one hand.

"She must be new," the pink haired girl said, tilting her head to the side.

Aomine snorted. Like the pervert he was, he thought that since her chest wasn't big, he would pay her no mind. Plus, newcomers pissed him off. They would come all calm and untalkative, use this guise to make friends only to stomp on their hearts carelessly as the cool kids lured them in. Afterwards, they would go back crawling to their old friends.

It was always the same story, with every person. And, personally, he despised them dearly.

Momoi skipped over to the girl to get to know her. Aomine didn't bother telling her to stay. He wanted to see how far this would go.

"Hey!" she greeted loudly.

The girl, out of surprise, dropped her book. She quickly picked it up and turned to Momoi.

"I'm Momoi Satsuki."

"N-Nice to m-meet you. I-I'm H-Hogiwara Airi."

Hogiwara stuttered so much Momoi couldn't help giggle. Perhaps she was a little too shy.

"Are you new?" she asked

"H-Hai."

"It's a pleasure to meet you. Maybe you'll want a tour of the school later? My friend and I have nothing better to do anyway."

Momoi pointed at Aomine with her thumb. It was true that, on the first day, there were no after-school activities yet. Upon seeing the intimidating boy, Hogiwara drew in a sharp intake of breath and took a step back. Man, was he tall. And muscular. Anyone who saw him could easily guess he played basketball.

The brown haired girl shook her head. "I-It's okay. I-uh, will v-v-visit myself."

"Aw. I insist though."

Momoi didn't get an answer. The teacher arrived and opened the door. The students rushed in, still chatting happily. Hogiwara went in last, and took a seat in the back of the classroom.

Their teacher clapped her hands together. Silence settled in as she presented herself and gave her yearly oration for new students, wishing them the best. Then, for the whole duration of class, she told them about the difficult program for this year and tested them on what they remembered from last year, to which Momoi greatly participated.

* * *

Lunch break

* * *

Momoi watched Hogiwara take out a bento, complete with panda shaped rice balls, steamed vegetables, some fish and sushi. Afterwards, she drank a juice pouch, stuffed her earphones in her ears, took out her book and began reading. It was as if the bento had been forgotten. No wonder she was so skinny. She must barely eat.

"I wonder why she declined my offer." Momoi sighed.

"Leave her be," Aomine said.

"But it bothers me. Look, she isn't even eating."

"Satsuki. Leave her alone."

"Neh, Dai-chan. You're no fun."

She dropped the subject nevertheless and rested her head on the table, her thoughts going to the basketball club. Aomine chose that moment to glance at Hogiwara. Her bento was, indeed, untouched. His stomach growled. He hadn't bothered bringing anything to eat. And sure enough, Momoi had brought him lunch. But being the athlete he was, he needed more food than anyone else.

Aomine did his best to ignore it. He had told himself he wouldn't interfere with this Hogiwara person. And he was going to keep true to his words.

* * *

Next day. Lunch break.

* * *

Hogiwara was sitting in the same spot as yesterday, listening to music while reading. This time though, she had bothered to grab one sushi and that was about it.

Aomine had a feeling she was teasing him. Why else would she leave a delicious looking bento on the table, and not finish it? Feeling grumpy because he had stayed up late thinking of the basketball team – and subsequently hadn't gotten enough sleep – he stood up and sluggishly made his way to her. Momoi thought for a second that he was finally trying to socialize.

Hogiwara felt rather than saw him approaching. Panic flooded her senses and she found herself shaking. Her spectacles almost fell to the ground. Why was he here? What had she done wrong?

She sunk in her chair even more and slipped off, hitting the ground with a thud. The Touou ace plopped himself carelessly on the sit opposite to her and began eating her bento. Hogiwara slowly sat back on her chair and stared in curiosity, adjusting her glasses. Was he only after her food?

Momoi shouted at her friend, who carelessly finished eating and left. The pink haired girl apologized and ran after him, prepared to give him a scolding worth remembering about. The new girl felt relief wash over her as they left.

It was the same the following day. He ate her bento and exited the class without a word. Again, Hogiwara had freaked out upon seeing him. But she'd immediately relaxed when he'd walked away. Momoi, once more, had apologized.

"I tried to talk to him. I guess he didn't listen. Do you mind baring with it a while longer? I'll try to get him to stop," she said.

Hogiwara nodded nervously.

For the next two weeks, though, it didn't seem to stop. The young girl had gotten used to Aomine's regular appearances. In the end, it did her more good than bad. Now, she wasn't forced to eat so much when she went home.

Momoi, on the other hand, gave up. She knew how stubborn her friend could be. Trying to get him to quit something he was going to adopt as a habit was like trying to tame a donkey. She also started staying with Hogiwara whenever she could, which, at first, hadn't been easy.

Over time though, the shyness faded away. If the girl didn't respond to her questions, she would calmly listen to Momoi's bubbly voice and occasionally shrug, nod or shake her head. There was something between them, similar to friendship. And the pink haired girl couldn't be prouder of herself.

Momoi was now focusing on recruiting first years for the basketball team. She had been gluing flyers on the walls everywhere. The delay to sign up was Wednesday September 18, in two days.

Anyone who passed by couldn't say they hadn't noticed the posters, unless they were blind, which, from memory, never happened to any Touou Academy student.

Momoi had dragged Aomine to the gymnasium to help her out. All the guy did, however, was lie lazily on the bench. First years entered the gym and filled out the registration forms that were handed to them. By the end of the day there was a big pile of sheets lying neatly on the floor. Momoi sighed heavily as she sorted through them. Only three of the participants had made it. Either the rest all had horrible skills, or they were starters who had no experience whatsoever in basketball.

The next two days, Momoi spent the afternoons and evenings sorting through files only to reject them. She was beginning to think their team wouldn't get any particular new members this year.

On the last day of recruitment, at night, she was packing up when she heard footsteps stop behind her. She turned around and was quite surprised. "Oh, hey Airi-chan."

That caught Aomine's attention. He snapped his eyes open. What was she doing here?

"Hey Momoi-San," she greeted, seriousness written all over her face.

Hogiwara handed the pink haired girl a sheet of paper. Momoi took it, curious as to what it was.

"I-I. . . I-I want t-to - uh. . . J-Join the t-team."

The contrast between the unsure stammering and the firm, resolute tone was almost shocking. Momoi blinked a few times. Well that was a first. Not once had a girl stepped up to say she wanted to join the basketball team. No girl actually cared to play for that matter. That was the main reason why they didn't have a feminine team. They were only interested in the players, not the sport itself.

"Gee. I don't know. Do you really want to?"

Hogiwara nodded frantically, her expression hopeful.

"I guess we can give it a try. I'll tell coach about it tomorrow."

"R-Really?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"I know why not," Aomine's deep voice interrupted.

Since she hadn't noticed him, the brown haired girl jumped in surprise. She froze stiff. This couldn't be good. She didn't mind him when he sat in front of her to eat her food. But the mere thought of being in the same room as him made her feel uneasy.

"I don't see why you're letting her in when no girl has been on our team before aside from you. And even then, you're just our manager."

"Dai-chan, give her a chance."

"Why? Have you seen her? She's a walking nerd slash skeleton. I doubt she will be able to endure one day of training."

"Dai-chan! Quit it!"

Hogiwara wanted to run out. How could she have been so stupid? Aomine was on the basketball team himself, and he was right. She wouldn't be able to endure one day of training, mostly because he would probably keep on trying to discourage her.

"Don't say I didn't warn you." Aomine snorted and exited the gym, hands in his pockets.

Momoi watched him leave and felt disappointed at her friend's attitude. She knew he was an ass, but this time, he had taken the meaning of the word to a new level. "Don't listen to him. He's being moody. I'll talk to our coach tomorrow."

Hogiwara nodded and left hurriedly as well. Momoi shook her head sadly. She had a feeling Aomine would be bullying this girl for a while. And to say she couldn't stand up for herself.

* * *

The coach, Harasawa, was as equally surprised the following day. He read over the document Momoi had handed him.

'Name : Hogiwara Airi

Position(s) : Center, Defense.

Team : Pillipinas Feminine Basketball Team

Statistics :

Physical Ability: 4/10

Technique : 5/10

Stamina : 3/10

Mental Strength : 8/10

Special Ability : Unknown.

Comments: Has a lot of work to do. Can come in handy at times.

Status: Acceptable.'

Harasawa twirled a strand of hair around his finger. What had striked him the most was her stamina, and physical ability. The stats were so low. How could she have played for any team at all? He sighed and gave Momoi the paper.

"I'm not even going to bother," he declared.

"Coach. Just because she's a girl doesn't mean she can't join."

"It's not because she's a girl. It's because she's weak. Plus, practice begins in a week, and the Winter Cup Preliminaries are in two months. How will she catch up?"

"Maybe if she works more she—"

"Momoi. I already made my decision. It's a no."

". . . Very well."

Momoi left the gym, feeling annoyed. Why was their coach such a jerk? It didn't matter. She would do everything in her power to help Hogiwara join the team. It had become her new goal.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello minna! Early update! Here is chapter 2. First things first, thank you so much for so many favorites and follows already! As well as the reviews. It means a lot to me!

Okay so. I was thinking this chapter would be all about Airi doubting herself and having difficulties to join the team. I also prepared some sort of story line for her and Sakurai. Friendship, that is. We'll see how it turns out.

And in case anyone wonders, since people usually call each other by their family names in Japan, Airi will be called Hogiwara for a good half of the story.

Disclaimer : I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Hogiwara finished the last page of her book and put it away. Finally. It had been a 1027 pages book she had been reading ever since August. Sure enough, the plot was good and the story was interesting, but it had taken her so long she knew she would need a break from reading for a while.

She leaned back in her seat and stared out the window as she switched between her songs to find one she liked. Her thoughts immediately drifted off to yesterday night. Hogiwara was beginning to have second thoughts about her choice. And if Momoi had indeed talked to the coach, and he had accepted, then it was too late to back out.

The young girl was a hundred percent sure that she wouldn't be accepted though. It was a team made of guys after all. On top of that, her statistics weren't exactly top notch. They were from last year, and nothing had much had changed in the span of a year. Ever since she'd left her old school, she hadn't had the opportunity to practice. She didn't give up on the sport though and, as often as she could, she watched games on TV.

Hogiwara used her palm to support her chin. Why in the world did she have to be so skinny? Why did she have to wear glasses? Why did she have to be, well, _herself_? She wished she was like the girls in her class. Pretty, popular, flawless. They didn't have trouble fitting in, did they?

The sound of chairs scraping against the tiled floor interrupted her thoughts. Hogiwara didn't bother glancing at the perpetrators. She knew who they were, and chose to only turn around once one of them had left.

Aomine ate her bento as usual, but didn't move this time. Six long minutes ticked by. Finally, the brown haired girl slowly spun her head around, and was met with the sight of a cheerful Momoi and a gloomy Aomine. These two contrasted so perfectly, she wondered how they became friends in the first place.

"I kind of have bad news. Coach declined your offer."

"Oh."

"But! I won't consider my job done until you've joined the team," Momoi added.

"Momoi-san, it's fine. I don't want to cause you trouble." Hogiwara gave her a small smile. If the coach said no then it was settled. No one could contest his orders, right? No one. Besides, she didn't want to change anything. That day, she didn't even know why she had proposed to join the team. It was as if her body had a mind of its own.

"No. I want to help you."

Hogiwara nervously brought her nails to her lips and chewed on them. There were times when Momoi insisted, and when she did, it was hard resisting her temptating offers.

"Really, it's okay. Thank you."

Momoi opened her lips to protest but Aomine placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Satsuki. Don't push it."

Momoi sighed and gave Hogiwara a sad smile. Afterwards she let Aomine drag her away.

Hogiwara let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. Man it had been hard. She really wanted to accept the pink haired girl's help. Yet, she knew if she did, it would probably lead to nothing. She was skinny, lacking stamina, and not that physically strong. How had basketball attracted her in the first place?

* * *

The bell announcing the end of class rang. Hogiwara gathered her stuff and waited until the classroom was empty before leaving herself. Without exactly knowing why, she let her feet lead her to the gym. Empty as well. A basketball was lying on the floor. Dropping her bag, the young girl reached for it. The hard, cold material coming in contact with her palms brought back memories, both good and bad

Hogiwara used one hand to dribble. Then, she ran towards the net and shot. The ball bounced off the rim and landed further away. The young girl shook her head.

"I do need a lot of practice. I've gotten rusty." With a sigh, she grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder. With one last glance, she exited the room.

The following day, after school, she came to the gym only to find the Touou Academy team practicing with much ardor. The young girl was fascinated. The dunks, the steals, the shots. Each member had a special energy radiating off of them, and she knew this was no ordinary team.

One of them turned towards the door. His large, brown eyes met hers for a second and both their cheeks heat up. The boy hesitantly gave her a small smile and went back to making shots and apologizing for no reason.

Hogiwara snapped out of her contemplation and walked away.

The following week, Hogiwara checked the club schedules and thus learned the team practiced on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays after school. Meaning she had the gym to herself today (Monday) and Thursday. She dared not tell Momoi of her plans, preferring to keep them to herself.

She thought then that she had found a great way to kill time. To try and get her skills back. But none of that happened. Hogiwara would merely make a shot or two, miss and leave. She was beginning to loose hope in ever being able to play basketball again.

* * *

Thursday, after school.

* * *

Hogiwara sat on the bench, holding her head in her hands. She had tried to at least make a shot, and failed. Had she lost her skills? Oh who was she kidding, what skills?

Footsteps snapped her out of her thoughts. Her head shot up and she was surprised to see the boy with the large brown eyes. He stopped in front of her, a faint blush on his cheeks.

"H-Hey," he greeted.

"Um. H-Hi."

There was silence for a while. Hogiwara stared at the ground while the boy merely rubbed the back of his neck. The atmosphere had gotten awkward, to say the least.

"I'm Sakurai. Sakurai Ryou, a second year as well."

"N-Nice to m-meet you. I—"

"I know who you are. Momoi-san told me about you."

Hogiwara blinked in surprise. Momoi had told him about her? She felt her cheeks darken. Boy did she hope the pink haired girl hadn't said anything embarrassing.

"I've been observing you for a while, ever since Friday to be precise. And when I asked Momoi-san for precisions, since you two are regularly seen together, she told me all I needed to know about you. Your lost passion for basketball, your statistics and such," he explained, sitting a good distance away from her.

Hogiwara pushed her glasses up her nose. She was speechless. How much more information did Momoi give this Satsuki guy?

"I don't know why but as she told me about you, I had this strange need to, you know, coach you."

She felt her heart skip a beat. This wasn't happening. One of the official team members was offering to be her coach. Momoi was stubborn, wasn't she? Even after Harasawa had refused for Hogiwara to join the team she had still managed to find someone else.

"What would be the point anyway? I've lost every and any skill I might have had in the past."

"If you truly love basketball then you shouldn't give up," Satsuki said, his face turning serious. "Sure, you might be skinny. Sure, you might lack a few other things. But it only means you should practice harder until you've mastered the sport. I was like you at first. Yet, I didn't give up, even when the others gave me a hard time. I've practiced, and practiced, and gained their respect. Now it's your turn."

Hogiwara was surprised at how fast his facial expression had changed. She felt every ounce of resistance and doubt slip away from her grasp. Sakurai was right. She had to at least give it a try.

"H-Hai," she said, slightly disturbed.

"G-Gomen," he apologized. "Now we've got to fit this in your schedule."

* * *

Satsuki and Hogiwara would now meet up every Mondays and Thursdays after school. Since that wasn't enough, Sakurai proposed for her to go to his place every Saturdays as well, since there was a court near his house. On Sundays, they would go at Hogiwara's house to do their homework and, when they'd finish, they would play video games on her laptop.

Hogiwara had slowly began to eat her bentos now, Sakurai's orders. She also began bringing a second one for Aomine so he wouldn't bother her.

Momoi noticed now how the two would hang out at any given occasion. Hogiwara would even go as far as bringing the boy honey lemons at practice when she thought no one was looking. The pink haired girl was getting jealous, but couldn't exactly complain since Hogiwara would always try to hang out with her as well.

The only inconvenient was that the brown haired girl wasn't progressing much. It was already October 1st and so far, she was only able to make three shots out of seven. Whenever Sakurai asked her to do three laps around the court, she would collapse after less than half of the first lap. She could only do one push up out ten, same went with pull ups.

Sakurai didn't know what to do to get her to try her best. Today was no different. He hovered over her collapsed and panting form, giving her a smile. "Come on, you can do better," he said.

He held out his hand. This time though, she didn't accept it. Hogiwara shut her eyes and shook her head.

"It's no use Sakurai-kun. I'll never be ready on time."

The boy watched her sadly. He was too scared to actually tell her she might be right. He didn't even have the courage to ask her to get up and try again either.

Just then, Aomine lazily walked up to them. He stared down at Hogiwara and his lip curled in disgust. "If I was you, I'd quit basketball for good."

The brown haired girl slowly sat up. Her bangs darkened her eyes as she rubbed her temples. Aomine snorted loudly

"Look at you. Barely able to get up after such a short run. Our team does not need a weakling like you."

"Is that so?" Hogiwara stood up. Her legs were shaking, warning to fail her. She drew in a deep breath and let it out before facing Aomine. Determination was legible on her features. The blue haired boy's words woke something in her. Something she long thought had died. It came back to her full force.

"I've heard that in order to play basketball, you have to have a motive, one good enough to push you to your limits. I didn't have one before. I didn't know why I was so interested in playing in the first place. But today, I found it. All this time, I was looking to play in a team in which I would have someone to pass the ball to. Someone who could back me up whenever I would miss. Someone strong enough to handle a weakling like me. Aomine Daiki. I will surpass myself in order to be able to play by your side!"

"Tch. Know that our team works on developing each member's individual skills. We have no interest whatsoever in team work. Do as you whish, I really don't care. Weakling." With that, he left.

Sakurai gulped nervously and observed his friend's reaction. Her expression hadn't changed, not one bit. Instead, she got in the process of running laps around the gym.

He watched her. Even after the first tour, even when he could hear her panting, she didn't stop. She didn't stop until she had completed all three laps. Didn't stop until she had done ten push ups, and pull ups. Only then did she grab a can of Pocari Sweat to drink with a trembling hand.

Sakurai felt as if an immense weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Aomine had just renewed Hogiwara's determination. The shooting guard instantly knew that things would be easier now. A lot easier.

* * *

Haha done. I was thinking I would focus a bit on Sakurai and Hogiwara. Don't worry though, there will be more Momoi and Aomine coming up. For now, I am still hesitating on Hogiwara's special ability.

And sorry if Sakurai is OOC. But there has to be times when he doesn't apologize and stutter all the time, right? Until next time!

~AHAL


	3. Chapter 3

Hello! So I think I am taking this story a little too fast, aren't I?

Anyway, more coaching for Hogiwara. Enjoy!

Disclaimer : I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Monday

* * *

Momoi plopped down on the sit next to Hogiwara and purposely elbowed her. The brown haired girl jolted back to reality and gave her friend a 'what was that for?' look.

"Sakurai-kun told me about your progress. I must say, I'm pretty proud of you."

From what Momoi heard, after Aomine's harsh words, Hogiwara had been giving it her all. Her stamina and physical ability had improved a lot; she could now run more laps and do more push ups and pulls ups. Sakurai had even began teaching her to shoot properly.

"Thanks," she answered.

"He says you are ready to play with the team next week."

Hogiwara tugged at one wire, causing one of her ear buds to fall out of her ear. She wasn't sure she heard that right. "Excuse me?"

"I said, next week, you will be able to play with the whole team."

"But I thought your coach—"

"Forget about the coach. We'll find a way to let you in."

Hogiwara thought about it for a second. That was what she had planned on doing from the beginning. It had been her ultimate goal. And now that she was been given the opportunity. . . She was having second thoughts.

"I don't know," she finally said.

"Airi-chan, if you want to improve even more you _have_ to play with other people. In the team, each member has their own position. It's by playing against them that you will find out what post your are truly meant for. Obviously, you were forced into center and defense in your old team."

"How did you. . .?"

"Sakurai said that you seemed more at ease with shooting rather than trying to dunk. Defense isn't half bad for you either."

Hogiwara was wowed. These guys definitely knew how to analyze someone. They had guessed all that just by watching her practice. No wonder Momoi was a data gatherer.

"And I thought Sakurai was other people enough."

Momoi giggled at the comment. This meant that Hogiwara was giving in. The pink haired girl was glad her plan was going as intended. There were times when she could leave you with only one choice: yes. And this was one of them.

Hogiwara thought for a while.

'_Know that our team works on developing each member's individual skill__s__. We have no interest whatsoever in team work_.'

If Aomine was right, then it would be harder than she thought to play by his side, if she was ever able to do so. Her old team had never relied on team work, not once. Their captain was the one to assign each member a position and whether they liked it or not, they had to accept it and play along.

The main reason why the team kept losing was because no one was at ease with their positions, and the captain wouldn't listen to any of her subordinates. When one of them left, the entire team dissolved. That's what had caused Hogiwara to have so many doubts about her skills in basketball. All because she was in the wrong place.

* * *

After school, Hogiwara headed to the girl's bathroom to put on her sports outfit: black leggings, Nike shoes and a short-sleeved, gray tunic meant for exercising. Since there was only one locker room, which was used by the guys, she had taken the habit of change the girl's bathroom.

Sakurai was waiting for her, as usual. Without saying a word, Hogiwara did the usual drills. Ten laps, fifteen push ups and fifteen pull ups. Afterward, she drank a can of Pocari Sweat and waited for her best friend slash coach's instructions.

"I don't think there's any reason for me to coach you anymore," Sakurai said.

Hogiwara felt uneasy. Whatever he was about to say must have some sort of connection with what Momoi had said this morning.

"Next week, you'll be working with the team. Don't worry, we'll find a way to let you in."

"I don't know if I am ready for that yet."

And she had her reasons. Some days, she would drop by the gym and quietly watch the team practice. She'd even made a list of their personalities. Wakamatsu was first. The way he dunked and barked orders showed just how aggressive he was.

Then there was Imayoshi. The guy had this permanent aura emanating off him and it simply gave her the creeps.

Next up was the newest trio of brothers, Fu, Ku and Su, also known as pranksters. They were always up to some mischievous trick. When it came to playing, Fu was the one that passed the ball and defended often. Ku was a dunking addict and Su made perfect shots. For now, they were bench members until the coach had decided whether they were good for the team or not.

Last up was Susa, a former member. He was mostly quiet and didn't seem particularly scary.

Hogiwara had learned most of this from observing them. The rest of the information was given to her by Momoi. What bothered her wasn't their play or their lack of teamwork; it was the fact that Aomine was never in the gymnasium during practice. Apparently, he didn't need to train and spent the hours the others dedicated to practice lazing around on the rooftop.

"You are more than ready, Airi-kun. You have learned new skills and it's just what you need to play with us."

Hogiwara nodded and sat on the bench, taking a minute to encase everything in and get back on board her interrupted train of thoughts.

When she had done some researches on the Touou Academy basketball team a while ago, she found out that Aomine was, indeed, stronger than she thought. He was their ace player and always showed up halfway through the game. That wasn't enough and, being the nerd she was, she dug deeper.

He used to play in Teiko high middle school in a team called the Generation of Miracles. His partner was someone who went by the name of Kuroko Tetsuya. People called him the Phantom sixth player, as well as Aomine's shadow.

They were the closest of friends and used to be inseparable until victory got to Aomine's head. He slowly began to distance himself from Kuroko. The team dissolved after their middle school years and each went their separate ways.

After reading all this, Hogiwara had wanted to be Aomine's new shadow. She knew she could never be anything like Kuroko. The boy was an entirely different specie, and she would never be able to pull that off. But she would push herself and do everything in her power to be Aomine's shadow. Why him? She didn't know.

"Alright. If you say I am ready, then I guess it's because I am ready," she said.

Sakurai smiled at her. "Now let's shoot some hoops, shall we?"

Hogiwara nodded, feeling satisfied and much more relaxed. Maybe she should trust them for now. Besides, if she really couldn't handle the team members she could always quit, right? "Hai."

* * *

Aomine let out a sigh as his forehead met with the hard, wooden table, a loud bang resounding in the process. It attracted the entire class' attention, and they wondered what was with the guy these days, for it wasn't the first time he'd done this.

Momoi frowned at her childhood friend and gave him the usual speech about learning his manners before going back to Hogiwara. "As I was saying, is there anything particular you do when playing basketball?"

"Not really, why?" Hogiwara answered.

"I'm trying to figure out whether you have a special ability or not."

"Satsuki, just give up already. This weakling's hopeless."

"Dai-chan!"

Hogiwara was used to Aomine trying to discourage her, so she didn't do anything and waited for the bickering to die down.

The nickname he had given her reflected his opinion on her in one word. He thought she was too weak to join the team, no matter how much she improved. The only way she would gain his respect was if she beat him on a one-on-one. But we all know his motto. The only one who can beat Aomine is Aomine himself. That, however, was proven wrong he tasted the bitter taste of defeat at Kagami's hands last year.

"Momoi-san, it's okay," Hogiwara interrupted. If she hadn't, she would've never seen the end of this. "I don't think I need any special ability to enjoy basketball."

Momoi sighed and, being smaller than Hogiwara, she looked up to see her face. "You're right. You have already acquired the necessary abilities anyway."

Aomine snorted. He raised his head and plunged his dark blue eyes in her hazel ones. Hogiwara held his look for as long as she could, ignoring the fear that was slowly building up in her chest. Whenever Aomine did this, it meant he was going to say something rather rude.

"If you really want to play by my side, beat me."

"I-I. . . I can't do that," she said.

"Tch. I knew it. Weakling."

"Yet," Momoi added, sticking her tongue out at him.

He rose an eyebrow, stood up, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and walked away. Momoi bit her lip.

"He's being harsh isn't he?"

Hogiwara shrugged and went back to contemplating the trees outside. Momoi took this as her cue and left. As she glanced at her friend, she realized just how much training had changed her physics. Her legs and arms were surrounded by a slight layer of muscle. Compared to that very first day, she wasn't as skinny as before.

That was a first step if she was going to join the team. They would never accept her if she was still in her walking skeleton form.

Momoi's lips curled in a smile as an idea formed in her head. Hopefully Hogiwara wasn't one of those girls who were obsessed with their hair.

* * *

Hehe. What will be the team's thoughts on Hogiwara? Most importantly, what are Momoi and Sakurai planning?

And sorry if Aomine is being harsh to her again, but it will be worth it in the future, trust me. For now, I'm trying to take things slow and not directly jump to the Winter Cup. Because trust me, I have so many things planned for the Winter Cup I can't sit still. Literally.

Until next time!

~AHAL


	4. Chapter 4

Hey hey hey! I want to think you guys for the reviews, favorites and follows, again. It means a lot! And I am so sorry for this late update! School and homework kept me busy

So I finally came up with Hogiwara's special ability. I. still need to perfect it though. For now it's a big clump in my head. It will be revealed in later chapters.

And Aomine is as harsh as ever, no surprise there.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Tuesday

* * *

Hogiwara adjusted her glasses, eyes intensely fixated on a page. She had borrowed a book from the library not too long ago and was now finishing it. It was a fiction of two or three hundred pages, an easy read for anyone who read fast.

She threw a sushi in her mouth, munching on it. Aomine stared at her. Hard. Hogiwara slowly shifted her orbs onto his and waited. He didn't say a thing, only kept staring while chewing on a rice ball.

"Do you. . . need something?" she asked hesitantly.

"The Lovely Bones," he read out loud. "What kind of crappy title is that, weakling?"

She didn't respond and raised the book higher. She didn't want to answer him. The more she ignored him, the faster he would leave. It was as easy as that. Although the young girl wanted to take a step closer, and get to know him better, she knew Aomine was just too blind to see it. Or rather, he did his best to ignore it.

Momoi skipped over to them and sat next to Aomine, a grin on her face. Hogiwara put a bookmark in her book and closed it. This was all too suspicious. Momoi rarely grinned. She was more of the smiley type.

"Either you got a good grade or you've decided to show your hidden crazy side."

Momoi shook her head no, the grin never faltering. Instead, it grew even wider, to the point of being almost disturbing. "I want to invite you over this Saturday."

"Well, you see—"

"Sakurai is invited too."

Hogiwara remembered her friends' promise. They said would find a way to let her in the team. What if this was what they had been talking about? True, she too was excited to see what they had reserved for her. There was no way she was turning this opportunity down.

"Okay. I'll go over to Ryou-kun's and we'll take the bus to your house."

"Great!"

Hogiwara quietly finished her bento. She had agreed to Momoi's plan of her own will. Yet why was it that she felt she would probably regret doing so? Well that wasn't a surprise, considering agreeing with Momoi always came with doubts. The girl was sometimes as wicked as Fu, Ku and Su combined, keyword being sometimes.

Aomine was unfazed by this. He had gotten used to Momoi being friendly towards this girl he disliked so much. The pink haired manager barely spent time with him at school anymore, and that made him feel even worse than the loneliest loner. Why did Hogiwara insist on playing basketball so much? She was a weakling, and weaklings stayed weak.

Aomine suddenly lost his appetite. He stared at the bento Hogiwara had made for him in disgust and pushed it towards her. The young girl looked at him in surprise.

"Um. Y-You've only half finished it."

He stood up and departed. Hogiwara sighed. The day she would prove to him she wasn't so weak would come. For now, she had to bear with it.

After school, she dropped by the gym to watch the team train, as she often did. As expected, the guys were practicing under the supervision of their coach. As usual, Aomine wasn't there.

Sakurai noticed her and discreetly waved at her. She waved back. Wakamatsu yelled something right then. Sakurai answered and jogged over to him. Hogiwara toyed around with her mp3 player as she left.

* * *

Thursday

* * *

Aomine prepared to go home, waiting for Momoi by the door. She skipped over to him, humming to herself. He snorted. Her cheerfulness was sometimes extremely ridiculous and at the same time, funny. It amused him to no end when she would talk about nonsense, when she embarrassed herself unconsciously, when she was friendly to people she barely knew.

And that's why he liked to have her around, not that he would admit it out loud. Being the self centered bastard he was, there were things the ace would never say out loud. He preferred keeping them to himself.

"Dai-chan. You're ready?"

Momoi's voice interrupted his musings. He nodded sluggishly. She walked in front of him, but Aomine didn't follow. He all of a sudden had the urge to go to the gymnasium, even though he knew who was there. It was stronger than him.

He turned around and headed for the opposite direction.

"Dai-chan?"

"I'll be right back," his deep voice answered.

Momoi shrugged and stood by the gates.

Aomine reached the gymnasium sooner than he thought he would. From where he was, he could see Sakurai instructing Hogiwara. The young girl listened, eager to start. Sucking in a breath, she hopped—yes, _hopped_—and threw the ball. It met with the rim, ran in circles around it before falling away from the net.

Aomine watched as she tried and tried again. Out of ten shots, she made five, in other words she made half.

"Good," Sakurai congratulated. "You need to jump though. When you jump, it helps you shoot more accurately."

"I try to," Hogiwara said, gulping down a bottle of water. "I really do. But it seems I'm more comfortable hopping."

Aomine chuckled, catching their attention. He directed his gaze towards Hogiwara, who stopped halfway through drinking. She lowered the bottle, wondering what he was doing here.

"Only rabbits hop, weakling."

"I'm not that weak," she murmured. It was loud enough for both of the boys to hear.

Aomine stifled a chuckle. This girl made him laugh, in all honesty. "Prove it. Beat me."

"I have no intentions of beating you. All I want to do is play by your side."

Not being able to hold it in anymore, Aomine threw his head back and guffawed loudly, holding his stomach. This was the joke of the year. He managed to control himself and even then, he still bore a half smirk. "You want to play by my side you say? Not even in your dreams."

Aomine turned his back to her. Not sooner had he taken one step that her voice filled his ears.

"I might not be as good as your old shadow, Kuroko Tetsuya. Heck, I'll never be as good as him, that's one thing I know. But no matter what you say, I'll do what it takes to be your new shadow, Aomine-kun. I'll keep trying until I've succeeded in doing so. Believe me."

Aomine felt mild anger rising in him. This girl was starting to piss him off. He was fine with her believing in her own words. But did she have to bring Kuroko up? What was the point in that? How did she know of him in the first place?

He clenched and unclenched his fists, keeping himself from just going there and doing something he'd eventually regret. Sometimes, too much was too much. "I hate weaklings. . .," he glanced over his back, his face calm, his eyes storming, "that are all talk."

He left. Sakurai let out a breath he didn't notice he had been holding. He suddenly realized how lucky Hogiwara had been. Aomine was a man of little patience, and he wouldn't hesitate giving someone a beating when he was annoyed.

"I think you took it a tad too far, Airi-kun."

She shakily adjusted her glasses. "I think so too Ryou-kun. I think so too."

* * *

Friday

* * *

Last day before the weekend, as well as the last day of the before last week before vacations. Everyone was excited and most already began making plans with their friends.

Hogiwara felt lonely in her corner. Momoi was absent today because she had the flu. It wasn't very surprising. The school uniform for girls consisted of a dress shirt and a simple skirt. When wearing that under the cold, who wouldn't get sick?

Now it was just her and Aomine. Their little talk came back to her. His words rung in her head, as clear as crystal. They spun round and round, faster and faster, to the point where she could no longer focus. She put her book down and cranked up the volume of her music.

Aomine didn't pay her any mind. He simply toyed around with his food, remembering the events of yesterday too. "I meant what I said," he said.

He wanted to make Hogiwara understand that not everything happened within the snap of a finger. There were things she wasn't made for, and basketball was one of these things.

Hogiwara paused the mp3 player and pulled her earphones out. Aomine's head was lowered, thus rendering her unable to see his face. She imagined what his expression would have been. A serious one. One that would make anyone distance themselves from him. However, she knew better than to be one these people.

"So did I," came her answer. Her tone was decisive, firm and resolute, albeit with a slight hint of doubt.

In any other case, that would have concluded the discussion. We all know though that Aomine is as stubborn as a donkey.

"Why do you insist so much?" he asked.

"Because I feel you have a great ability, one that could use skills as minor as mine."

"Forget it weakling. You—"

"No. I am not a weakling," she interrupted sharply. "A weakling is one that has no strength whatsoever to defend him or herself. And yes, I might be weak, but I am not one."

Aomine snorted at this. He sat up straight, leaning in his chair and placing his hands against the back of his head. "Talk all you want, I still don't believe in your bullshit."

Hogiwara sighed. She racked her brain to find a way to prove her point, to prove to him that she wasn't a weakling. Prove him she could do alright by herself.

"In that case. Starting Monday, don't expect anyone to be helping me. Not even Momoi-san. I will work. . . by myself," she said, the last words slightly choked out.

Aomine gazed at her. Her face expressed no second thoughts on this decision. She seemed okay with the fact of turning down Momoi, who'd helped Hogiwara so much. From the beginning of the year up until now.

He crossed his arms over his chest. "If you can do that, then I won't estimate you to be so weak anymore."

Hogiwara felt hope surge in her. That was what she wanted to hear. It was the remaining element that would at last help her completely focus on basketball. She managed to keep her emotions in check with much difficulty.

"Hai."

Aomine shook his head. It was worth giving it a try, wasn't it? He could always go back to his old habit of calling her the word she claimed didn't fit her.

* * *

Saturday

* * *

Hogiwara woke up at eight am. She showered quickly and picked out a pair of blue jeans, a long sleeved knitted tee and boots. Afterwards, she dressed up and grabbed her glasses and mp3 player just as she hurried out her bedroom door.

The sight of her sister sitting at the table and her mother talking on the phone greeted her. She took a sit and began gulping down the scrambled eggs either her mom or sister made for her.

"Wow slow down stiff stick. Is your boyfriend coming home again?"

"No Kira. I'm going over at a friend's house. And for the last time, Ryou-kun isn't my boyfriend."

"Yeah, and I'm the Queen of England."

"You're only 19."

"Shut it smart-ass."

Hogiwara smiled to herself. Sometimes, Kira seriously reminded her of Aomine. A girl version of him, that is.

She put her plate in the dish washer, gave her mom a quick hug, waved a 'see you later' at Kira and thumbed her way in the street. The nearest bus stop was a seven minutes walk from her house. Hogiwara plugged the earphones in her ears and headed there.

A cold breeze blew past, and she shivered, wishing she had taken her coat. She had been in such a hurry she had forgotten to take it. Well it was too late now.

As she stood under the red panel with a bus sign on it, she thought of many things Momoi could be planning. She also thought of many ways to ask Momoi to stop helping her so much. She didn't want to be too rude, simply understandable.

Sakurai had been waiting for her by his doorstep. They greeted each other, a short period of time during which Sakurai gave her his jacket, waving away her words of protest. They took the bus to Momoi's house, who immediately opened the door five seconds after they rung the bell.

"I'm so glad to see you! Please come in," she said with a heavy voice, characteristic of the flu.

Sakurai and Hogiwara did so. They took off their shoes and slipped on the socks placed in a basket for visitors, politely said hello to Momoi's parents and followed her into her room. And that's where they felt less comfortable.

The manager's room was entirely as pink as her hair, with the same colored panthers ornamenting the walls. A queen sized bed lay in the middle of the room. In the far corner was a desk on which was a computer, and a chair half pushed underneath. In another corner there was a pile of magazines and a CD player. To top it off, the carpet itself was a bright, almost eye-hurting neon pink.

Hogiwara and Sakurai could, on normal circumstances, stand seeing pink. But being in a room where everything was pink was an entirely other thing.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to warn you. Here, I'll take you to our basement."

The basement was much better. The walls were white, and the tiled floor had a regulate pattern. It was as cold as ice. For all furniture, three chairs, one underneath a desk with a mirror on it.

Momoi pushed Hogiwara towards that specific chair and forced her to sit down while beckoning Sakurai over to another chair. He sat and kept silent, his Adam's apple bobbing as he gulped. Momoi kneeled down and searched through a bag they hadn't noticed her bringing.

"Airi-chan, before we start, are you tonsurephobic?"

"I am not particularly afraid of getting a haircut," the brown haired girl replied, suddenly realizing what was going to happen.

Momoi got out a pair of scissors and a small towel, which she wrapped around Hogiwara's shoulders. "Well then, I hope you enjoy!"

"And done!" Momoi took a step back, bent down to pick up the remaining strands on the floor and threw them in the bag.

Hogiwara stared at her reflection in the mirror, quite pleased with the manager's work. Her now chin length hair was tucked behind her ears, and shining slightly because Momoi had insisted to spray hair perfume on it.

"What do you think Sakurai-kun?" the pink haired girl asked.

"It looks. . . good." Sakurai was at a loss for words. Hogiwara, with chin length hair, and no glasses, earnestly looked like a boy. He was only assured this was his female best friend when she placed said glasses back on the bridge of her nose.

"Thanks Momoi-san," she said, removing the towel.

She prepared herself for her next words. It might hurt a bit, or a lot depending on how Momoi felt. But she had to do it. It was another step to take if she was ever going to join the Touou Academy basketball team. "And Momoi-san?"

"Yeah?"

"I won't be needing your help anymore."

Momoi froze, and so did Sakurai. It took her a while to encase the true meaning behind these words; their true significance.

"W-What are you—"

"I made a promise to Aomine-kun." Hogiwara fingered a strand of her that had slid to her jaw. "If I can prove I don't need help doing some things, then he would respect me, in a way. I want him to see me as someone else, you know?"

Hogiwara turned to her friends, a smile gracing her features. A true smile, complete with a few teeth. One that even reached her eyes. "From now on, I want you to see me as an ordinary basketballer, an ordinary student. I want you to see me as Aomine-kun's partner."

* * *

Voilà! So yeah. From now on, Hogiwara will be working solo. This story is going as intended, and I am truly pleased with that. Hope you enjoyed the longest chapter I have written yet. And I hope you all understood the plan was for Hogiwara to act like a boy, even though I didn't precise it. Until next time!

~AHAL

Song I listened to:

Centuries by Fall Out Boy


	5. Chapter 5

Hello minna! So things are beginning to settle between Aomine and Hogiwara. Yeah. Enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer : I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Monday, October 19th

* * *

Hogiwara drew in a deep breath. It was now or never. She would go in there and propose to join the basketball team. It was easy, right? What if they refused her? What if they laughed at her?

'Arg, this is stupid,' she thought repeatedly hitting her head.

This morning, as she walked through the hallways, people stared at her while whispering amongst themselves. For not only was Hogiwara's hair shorter, but she was also wearing tights under her school uniform.

A few girls had let out small squeals when she would take off her glasses to wipe them. In those cases, she would raise her head to look a them before automatically placing the spectacles back on the bridge of her nose.

All in all, her day had been strange, and she didn't appreciate going over it, not one bit.

Now that Momoi had agreed to let her do things on her own, Hogiwara found herself disoriented. What to do? Where to go? What to say? Her original plan had been to walk in the gym, introduce herself, propose to join the team and expect the coach to ask her what her skills were. Again, easy, right? Then why was she having second thoughts?

Hogiwara had bothered buying a baggy basketball shirt and shorts. This way, her curves wouldn't be seen, and her almost flat chest. . . Well that didn't matter. The shirt was mostly for the curves. That should help hide her feminine features. One last time, easy, right?

Hogiwara felt a sweat drop run down her back. There was no going back. Either she stepped in there or she gave up on what she had been working so hard on: join an official basketball team. Drawing in a deep breath to regain her composure, Hogiwara took a step forward, then another, and another.

The team stopped practicing and instead, watched her as she headed straight for the coach. Hogiwara felt nervous. Extremely nervous. She had never liked attention, and she never would. She stood in front of the coach, took off her glasses and wiped them, finding it a great distraction. The words flew out of her lips before she could do as much as blink.

"I would like to join the team."

Total silence. Silence during which Momoi resisted the urge to just glomp her friend. Silence during which Sakurai resisted the urge to apologize. Silence broken by Wakamatsu's loud yell.

"Oi, are you a guy or a girl!?"

Hogiwara reluctantly placed her spectacles on her nose and kept her eyes downwards.

"Consider me a boy when I do not have my glasses on."

"That did not answer my question!"

"It means she's a girl idiot," Imayoshi answered.

Harasawa stared at her while twirling a strand of hair around his finger. So this was the girl Momoi had first talked about. She didn't look the way he had expected her to. In fact, he did not expect her to have a layer of muscle covering her arms and legs.

"Hm. What should I do with you? I have read your statistics from last year, and I believe they were quite. . . Weak."

"I have improved," Hogiwara said, her head shooting upwards.

Her eyes did not meet Harasawa's. They met the ceiling.

"I still don't know what to do of you. Imayoshi, Momoi, I'll let you two be the judges."

The brown haired girl turned to them. They both nodded. Momoi smiled sadly, hoping the coach wouldn't ask them to be too rude. Imayoshi threw a ball her direction. Hogiwara caught it and blinked. For all response, Imayoshi crouched in a defensive position, soon followed by the others.

'Oh God,' the brown haired girl thought.

Not wanting anything bad to happen to her spectacles, she took them off again and placed them on the bench. It was a good thing she thought of wearing contact lenses before entering the gym, even though she wasn't quite used to them yet. Afterwards, she walked on the court, dribbling the ball.

Momoi sucked in some air and blew the whistle. Almost immediately, Wakamatsu charged for the young girl. Hogiwara took a side step, causing him to grab air instead of the round object he was after. Hogiwara ran for the net but was stopped by Fu. Ku and Su cornered her, snickering between themselves. The young girl felt panic rise to her head and hardly fought it. She had to analyze, and think.

Hogiwara's hazel eyes took in her surrounding. Sakurai was free. Without hesitation, she propelled herself in the air and threw the ball his way. Sakurai caught it and shot while muttering a small "gomenasai".

Fu, Ku and Su went back to their original positions. Hogiwara resisted the urge to head straight for the door and leave. She had to do this. For her own sake. Plus, she had come here of her own will. Leaving like this would be cowardice. And she knew, had to prove she was no coward.

Hogiwara stayed by the net, not exactly knowing where to go since her position had not yet been determined. She watched as Wakamatsu stole the ball from Susa and headed for the net she was standing under. Hogiwara tried to keep calm. She would be brave.

The blond haired boy jumped with a battle scream, ready to dunk. Hogiwara hopped. Her fingers merely touched the side of the ball before she found herself being pulled down by gravity. It was strong enough to contradict Wakamatsu's plans. He let the ball go as soon as he felt the slight pressure. It rolled out of the court.

The whistle was blown, signaling an out of bound. Imayoshi crossed his arms, that creepy smile stretching his lips. Hogiwara felt a shudder run down her back.

"For a rookie you sure are something."

The young girl nodded. Imayoshi walked to Momoi so they could discuss. Hogiwara saw Sakurai approach her. He tapped her shoulder and held out a hand, one which was holding the basketball. She shook her head.

"I need a drink. Please come with me," she said.

As they headed out, Wakamatsu yelled.

"Oi, where do you think you're going?"

"Let them be Wakamatsu-senpai," Ku sighed.

His brothers nodded in agreement. The blond yelled at them instead. The two friends used this occasion to slip away. They reached the vending machine. Hogiwara took out a coin, put it in, pushed a few numbers and two seconds later, a can of Pocari Sweat came out. She grabbed it, popped it open and drank the content.

"You did well," Sakurai complimented.

"Arigatou," Hogiwara thanked.

"I think coach was pretty impressed. For a girl who had low statistics you sure blew his mind."

"That's nice. But I feel as if something was missing."

"Well, Aomine-kun never practices with us. So it's normal you feel that way."

She shrugged, crumpled the empty can and dunked it in a trash can. Then they went back to the gym, where the team was practicing again. Harasawa beckoned Hogiwara over. She jogged there.

"You're not half bad, you know?"

Hogiwara silently waited for his next words. Harasawa twirled a strand of hair around his finger.

"I hope you've heard the Winter Cup will be held in November."

"Isn't it supposed to be December?"

"Indeed, it is. But due to the oncoming compromising weather, it was pushed a month earlier. Now that I have seen you're way of playing, I can tell you're meant to be a small forward. Do you know what that is?"

"Of course I do. It is the most versatile position in basketball. In order to lead his team to victory, a small forward must be able to defend, shoot accurately and pass the ball often."

"I see you know a lot. Very well. You'll be staying on the team until after tomorrow, when Aomine will be coming back to practice. If you can do well with him on the team, we'll keep you. On the other hand, if your play decreases, you'll be kicked out. Understood?"

"Yes."

"Good. Now I've heard of that 'promise' you've made to Aomine. I am going to warn you. Rare are the people whom have succeeded in playing by his side. In fact, Kuroko Tetsuya as well as the Generation of Miracles might be the only ones he respects enough to play confidently with. It will be hard for you to become his shadow. I can just hope you can make it. With no new shadow, and last year's loss, it's as if he partially lost interest in basketball."

Hogiwara encased in the news. There were bits of it she already read, and heard. The rest was completely new to her. So that's why Aomine was so harsh on her? He not only thought he'd never find a shadow, but he was also affected by last year's defeat. That was something.

Harasawa dismissed her. She headed for the court. Now that she had found another motivation she was ready to practice twice harder than before. She would help Touou Academy win this year.

* * *

Tuesday October 20th

* * *

Hogiwara noticed Aomine wasn't here today. Momoi noticed as well.

"He must be on the rooftop."

And that was all she needed. The brown haired girl gathered the bentos she had set on the table and set out on a quest to find the rooftop. When she did, she tucked the containers under one armpit and used her other arm to climb up the ladder with much difficulty. And, as expected, Aomine was lying there, hands tucked under his head, eyes shut close.

As silently as she could, Hogiwara sat next to him and carefully placed the bentos in front of her.

"I heard you climbing," Aomine said.

She was startled by his voice. Yet, it didn't keep her from opening the blue bento and pushing it towards him. He didn't budge, only opened his eyes to stare at the naked tree branch on top of him.

"So. . . Apparently you're going back to practice tomorrow."

"Who told you that?"

"The coach did. I was accepted on the team until I could prove your presence didn't bother my play."

Aomine had to chuckle. He sat up, his knees facing upwards, his elbows resting on them.

"And you've done that without Satsuki's help?"

"I have," Hogiwara confirmed, plopping a piece of sushi in her mouth.

Aomine watched her from the corner of his eyes. He noticed how well the shadow of the tree played with her hair color, how it darkened her fair skin. How she had changed. Maybe she wasn't that weak.

"I think you should eat. Don't want you to turn into what I used to look like before, right?"

Aomine snorted. He flattened his legs and placed the bento in his lap.

"As if that would ever happen. . . Airi."

Hogiwara felt her blood circulation stop. He had called her by her name. Yes he had. She directed her gaze downwards. Yes, she would be Aomine's shadow. And this was only the beginning of an interesting adventure.

* * *

Haha, here we go! I think I am going to start calling Hogiwara by her name, Airi starting chapter 6. You guys help me choose. Anyway that concludes it for chapter 5. Hogiwara's special ability is really starting to settle in. Until next time!

~AHAL

Songs I listened to:

Love Me Like You Do by Ellie Goulding.

7/11 Beyonce


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for more follows and favorites! It means a lot. I also noticed small mistakes in last chapter. I updated it. Hope it didn't bother you.

Aomine called Hogiwara by her name, Airi. Maybe I should start doing the same? Starting next chapter, hopefully. So will his presence in the team bother Airi? We'll see, we'll see. Oh and by the way, I can't help but add that Airi's sister and mom were very surprised by her new hairstyle. Hehe. Enjoy!

Disclaimer : I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Wednesday

* * *

It was very windy that day. Everyone had warm coats on and girls began wearing leggings under the school uniform. The cold was seriously coming up, and it was time to get ready to brave it.

Hogiwara headed to class along with Momoi, who was blabbering non-stop about how the training ration would be doubled. Hogiwara would nod and occasionally mutter a small 'oh' or 'yes'. She was much too lost in her own world to properly pay attention.

Even in class, she couldn't focus. Her thoughts were focalized on today's training session. As said, Aomine would be there. Even if he wanted to, he wouldn't be able to laze on the rooftop because of the cold. Would he play with her? Or play against her? Would he ignore her? Or acknowledge her passes?

So many questions spun around in her head, all to be answered today after school. But she wanted answers now, to prepare herself for what was to come.

Hogiwara found herself doodling stick figures in her notebook. One of them had dark hair, and was passing the ball to the other one who had much lighter hair. The feeling of something tickling the back of her neck snapped her out of her weird trance. She let out a surprised yelp. The teacher stopped talking and instead, stared at her, something the whole class did.

"Excuse me Hogiwara, did I formulate my question wrong?"

"N-No, no."

"Then, since you volunteered so energetically, why is Mars called the red planet?"

Hogiwara gulped and racked her brain. "B-Because it's c-covered with rust."

The teacher nodded. "Next time, pay more attention though, young lady."

Hogiwara let out a shaky breath and glanced at the seat located behind her. There sat Aomine, smirking smugly. He was holding a pen pointing her direction, and it didn't take long for the brown haired girl to figure out what he had made use of it. All in all, he now knew her most ticklish spot.

Hogiwara focused on the board, doing her best to block out any thoughts concerning practice. It would be a waste if she just let her little world lure her away from reality.

At lunch break, Momoi left with Aomine to talk with their coach and not two minutes later, came back running full speed. She pulled at Hogiwara's arm who was eating peacefully.

"Airi-chan! We've got to go!"

"Hm? Momoi-san? What—"

"No time to explain. Coach says we've got to go practice now!"

Without another word, Hogiwara gathered her stuff and exited the classroom. Once in the hallway, she ran after Momoi, stopped by the bathroom to change and put on a pair of contact lenses then burst into the gym where she bent, hands on her knees, trying to regain her breath.

"Looks like someone's late," Harasawa said.

Hogiwara directed her eyes his way, the effort of doing so combined with her painting causing her to close one eyelid. The boys stifled a wave of laughter.

"I-I just heard t-the news. . . "

Momoi patted her shoulder affectionately before going over to the bench. Hogiwara stood up straight and walked to the team, standing next to Sakurai.

"Okay, everyone's here. Starting now, you will be training every week day, during lunch and after school. Your training ration will be doubled after vacations. With the Winter Cup coming up, we cannot afford any loss of time. You will also have a practice game after the break."

They nodded. Harasawa had never been this anxious, and they figured he was taking this very seriously. After all, he didn't want what happened last year to happen again this year. They had to win.

"You may now practice."

Imayoshi got the ball from under the bench and ran on the court. Momoi blew the whistle and it began. Everything went so fast, Hogiwara was disoriented. Just as Imayoshi threw the ball to Susa, Aomine jumped and caught it mid air. Wakamatsu tried to block him but was rewarded with an elbow to the stomach. Aomine dunked the ball fiercely.

Hogiwara blinked, regaining her composure and took her position. Fu got the ball and passed to Ku. Or tried to. At the last second, Sakurai stole it with a 'gomenasai' and headed for the hoop. Hogiwara found herself following him and, as he got ready to make a three pointer, she stepped in front of him. Sakurai shot. Hogiwara hopped and managed to push the ball with her fingertips.

Aomine, who was behind the brown haired boy, grabbed the round object, and dunked. Hogiwara quickly took a step to the side and ended up falling unceremoniously on her bottom as Aomine's legs hit the ground with a loud 'thud'. He glanced at her, head held high, a look of pure superiority on his face.

Hogiwara scrambled to her feet and took her position. This time, she managed to steal the basketball from an unsuspecting Imayoshi and ran for one of the nets, only to be cornered by Wakamatsu and Fu. The young girl drew in a deep breath and scanned her surrounding.

Behind extended arms, she saw Aomine, glaring at her. With a gulp, and a small inner prayer, she hopped, soon followed by Fu and Wakamatsu. Hogiwara hoped hard this would work and passed the ball to Aomine downwards. The round object flew past the two boys legs and was intercepted by the dark blue haired player. He immediately ran past the small trio that had just landed and dunked.

For the next five minutes, the game went on like this. Hogiwara trying to defend, block Sakurai's three pointers, pass to Aomine and shoot. Keeping an eye out for eventual attacks from Wakamatsu, Fu, Ku and Su. Wondering why Susa was simply standing there, watching them. Avoiding Imayoshi and his creepy aura. When Momoi blew her whistle, Hogiwara was fighting to get air into her lungs.

Sakurai jogged over to her. "Are you okay? I'm really sorry."

"I-It's fine. N-Not your f-fault."

Su neared them, holding a can. He shoved it in Hogiwara's face a mischievous smile on his lips. "You must be exhausted. Here, have a drink."

Without thinking, she accepted the 'drink' and gulped it. Sakurai tried to warn her but Su slapped a hand over his mouth. Not one gulp later, Hogiwara pulled the can away from her mouth and began coughing and wheezing. Fu, Ku and Su burst out laughing, while the rest of the team gave them curious stares.

"That was water, orange juice, and Pocari Sweat all mixed together," Fu managed to utter out, hiccuping.

Hogiwara held a hand in front of her mouth and did her best not to puke right there and then. She walked over to the nearest trash and threw the can in it. When she turned to the culprits, she found Aomine laughing with them. He had an arm over his eyes, his head thrown back, mouth wide open to let out his laughter, his other arm wrapped around Ku's shoulder.

Hogiwara felt as if she had been kicked harshly. Okay, this was going to be tougher than she thought. But if they thought she was going to give up so easily they must have mistaken her for the wrong person. She would push herself to her limits whether it seriously hurt her or not.

Aomine, on the other hand, was fairly amused. Coming back to practice wasn't so bad. He had just befriended the trio and figured he could help them pull pranks on Hogiwara until she snapped. He wanted to drive her crazy, to see how strong her resistance was. That would help him determine whether she was worthy of being his partner or not.

"Alright back to practice!"

* * *

After school, the team reunited in the gym. The coach had an important meeting, thus he wasn't able to be there. Instead, he had put Momoi in charge. The young girl ordered them to do ten laps around the court. Afterwards, she let them practice all the while keeping a particularly close eye on Aomine, Fu, Ku and Su.

At the end of practice, Hogiwara was so exhausted her legs could barely support her weight. Her arms were covered in bruises from being grabbed by numerous hands and from other players' arms colliding roughly with hers. That was how her first official day of training had gone. It was gruesome, to say the least.

"Great job everyone," Momoi cheered, although her voice was drowned out by the talking.

Hogiwara headed for the girl's bathroom. Once she was there, she slumped to the floor, one hand covering her forehead. Inhale after exhale, she went over the events that had happened during practice. Aomine always dunking in the net she was closest to. Her always falling on her bottom. Fu, Ku and Su purposely bumping into her, cornering her so they could get the ball. Aomine ignoring her and getting as far from them as possible. In those cases, Hogiwara had had no choice but to try and shoot.

The sound of the door opening didn't even bother her, neither did the feeling of warm arms wrapping around her, or the feeling of a fully developed chest meeting the side of her head. No doubt, Momoi was hugging her.

"Airi-chan. Are you okay?" she breathed out.

No reply. Momoi tightened her grip. She would've gone to the locker room, yelled over the guys, told them to be less rough on her. If it weren't for the memory of Hogiwara telling her she didn't need help anymore, Momoi would have done it.

Hogiwara reluctantly and gently pulled away from the reassuring hug and stood up. "I can do this. I need to do this." She went through her bag, found her glasses, took out the contact lenses and placed the glasses where they belonged, on the bridge of her nose.

"This is what I have to go through. It's an obstacle I have to learn to overcome. Alone. Even if I get hurt, I _will _do it."

"But the trio, and Dai-chan, they—"

"They want to make it hard for me, I know. But I won't give up. I will be fine, Momoi-san."

Momoi just sat there, listening to her friend's words. Oh how she wished she could contradict her.

The pink haired manager stood up as well. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yes."

She left. Hogiwara observed her bruises a while longer. Perhaps those would later be the scars that would remind her of all the difficulties she had to go through. She quietly changed and left.

"I can do this. I will become Aomine-kun's shadow," she chanted to herself.

And those words were what lulled her to sleep that night.

* * *

Yeah yuh, Aomine's harsh side is back, and you know it! So I am planning on making Aomine, Fu Ku, and Su the foursome Hogiwara is going to have to watch out for. No worries readers, Aomine will be nice to Hogiwara. Just wait.

Oh and starting next chapter, she's officially being called Airi. I have made my choice, haha. Hope it won't confuse you guys too much. Until next time ~

~AHAL


	7. Chapter 7

Hello everyone! Here I am with chapter 7. I think this story might be 15 chapters long or more. Anyways, as said, Hogiwara is officially called Airi. Again, hope it won't confuse you guys too much. And thank you all so much for more favorites and follows. It means a lot. I know I've written that a lot, but it's all I can do to describe how thankful I am.

And to shorten things, I'll be calling our 'favorite' trio Fukusu from time to time.

Now on to the story!

Disclaimer : I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Thursday October 22nd

* * *

"Earth to Airi-chan!" Momoi snapped her fingers in front of her friend who, in return, snapped out of her trance. Airi blinked and turned to the pink haired manager.

Her hands were on her hips and a playful scowl ornamented her face. "You get distracted so easily, it's ridiculous."

"What do you mean?"

"Have you ever noticed that you often space out just by staring at something long enough?"

Airi let a small smile stretch her lips. Momoi was right. But she really couldn't help it; it was in her nature. In class, she could manage. That's why her grades were between 16 to 19 out of 20. She was a good student, simply absent-minded at times she wasn't supposed to be.

"See? You're zoning out again."

"Okay, you've made your point Momoi-san."

"You know you can call me by my first name, right?"

Airi shrugged. As they neared the gym, she suddenly felt sick, remembering what was in store for her. More pranks from the newly formed foursome. And perhaps, more bruises.

That morning, when she had observed the purple bruises on her arms, she thought they had a strange way of making themselves visible. Purple abnormalities on fair skin. They contrasted so well.

The bruises, in her opinion, represented dark intentions, and the places they adorned represented her pure determination.

They still hurt a bit, but she could do it. All she had to do was avoid them for the day while making sure she passed the ball to Aomine, which wouldn't be so easy.

Earlier, Aomine had left with for all reason, a quick, "I'm gonna go find Fukusu."

That was how he named all three of them. By merging their names. Point was, they were up to something. Something bad. Airi would have to pay attention more than usual during practice.

They stepped inside the big gymnasium. Momoi slightly waved at her and took her position beside the coach. Harasawa waited for Airi to join the team before he began talking.

"I excuse myself for my absence yesterday. It seems it will be happening frequently with the preparations for the Winter Cup. I'll be back in time, though. Meanwhile, Imayoshi will be in charge of coaching the team starting the Monday after vacations.

He nodded, and Airi felt uneasy. When they were free, she took her position, ignoring Aomine and Fukusu's snickers. The whistle was blown.

Airi felt wind as Susa zoomed past her. She turned around and chased after him. Susa got ready to dunk when the ball was stolen from him by Aomine. Cautiously, Airi went after him only to find herself cornered by the unwanted trio, permitting Aomine to dunk comfortably. They then went after the ball, not after bumping into her roughly, using elbows and shoulders.

Airi gritted her teeth as pain surged through her arms. It hurt. Scratch that, it _burned_, as if fire was consuming her very arms. She held on and continued the game. By the end of the first quarter, she had only managed two passes and one three pointer.

She sat on the bench, one towel thrown over the top of her head as she panted. She knew she shouldn't be so exhausted after barely ten minutes, but the blocking and bumping wasn't making it easy.

Ku saw that as the perfect opportunity. He fished two ice cubes from a small bucket he had placed near the bench earlier, snuck up behind Airi and shoved them inside the back of her shirt.

The young girl yelped and jolted to her feet, wiggling to get the ice out. Aomine and Fukusu burst out in laughter. Wakamatsu did the same, soon followed by a chuckling Imayoshi and a grinning Susa. When the ice melted, Airi realized she was shivering. She sat back down, and kept her face hidden underneath the towel. Now that was embarrassing.

Momoi watched, incapable of doing anything. She didn't want to embarrass her friend even more, even though all she really wanted to do was help.

Airi noticed the bucket full of ice and got an idea. She took a few, placed them in the towel, twisted the cloth so the cubes wouldn't fall out and began dabbing at her bruises. It didn't make them go away, but boy did it relieve her. Slowly, she proceeded until more than half of the bucket's content was gone, successfully treating the injuries.

Airi unwrapped the wet towel and wiped her face with it. "That's refreshing," she muttered to herself.

Upon looking up, she saw the foursome's gazes turn to glares; she gulped.

"Alright back to practice!" Harasawa shouted.

Airi stood up and followed the team on the court.

After school, more practice. More bumping. More bruises, to the point were it seriously hurt. Not only physically, but also morally and mentally. Airi remembered that moment on the rooftop, when Aomine called her by her name. Back then, she thought he would finally be nice. Unfortunately, she had been fooled.

The brown haired girl was thinking hard as they were dismissed, done with their practice for the day. Ever since Aomine had begun hanging out with Fu, Ku and Su, things changed.

_That'__s__ it!_

"M— Satsuki-san?"

Momoi turned to her friend, surprised. That was the first time she called her by her first name. Whatever was next must be pretty important.

"You know, I think it's been a while since you've hung out with Aomine-kun during lunch."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Airi sighed and stopped, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. "Look I'm not asking for us to stop being friends, but I think it's the best solution if you start hanging out with Aomine-kun more. That way, he won't be able to get to Fu, Ku and Su."

Momoi understood where she was getting. She let out a small 'oh' and gripped onto her bag handle tighter. "What about you?"

"I'll be fine. I still got Ryou-kun."

_I'll be fine she says_. Momoi had a feeling she would later regret not telling Airi she wouldn't always be fine.

* * *

Friday October 23rd

* * *

As promised, Momoi managed to force Aomine to eat with her. Slight relief washed over Airi. She finished her bento, put the container in her bag and left to change for practice.

Before she slipped on her athletic outfit, Airi stared at her reflection in the mirror, her eyes trailing to the bruises on her arms. She grimaced, took off her glasses and got a pair of contact lenses from the box. Airi threw her head backwards and put them on one by one. She blinked and finally got ready.

Practice began. Airi had to grit her teeth several times to push through the trio that had taken a liking to cornering her during games. She got the basketball, ran for the net and hopped just as Wakamatsu jumped in front of her, arm raised high. Airi lowered her hand and threw the ball to anyone that happened to be behind her quickly. She had calculated how long she could stay in the air if she hopped. Approximately 0.9 seconds. Roughly one second.

So the best way to do anything in the air was to think quick, and act quick. Anything that was apt to the situation.

Susa got the ball, and ran straight for one of the nets. Airi stayed where she was and watched Fu steal the ball and pass to Ku, who managed a three pointer. Afterwards, she managed to steal the ball from a not-so-easy-going Ku and threw it to Sakurai. The boy made a three point.

Airi used the front of her shirt to wipe the sweat that had accumulated on her forehead. It was second quarter already. Sure, her stamina had improved, but it could still only allow her to last two quarters and the first minute of third quarter. So it was still considered average.

Aomine charged for her, snapping her out of her trance. She blinked and got into a defensive stance. The momentum at which he was rushing forward was scary, and Airi felt her limbs trembling. Aomine stopped in front of her, dribbling the ball with his right hand, then the left. A grin made its way onto his face.

"Yo, think you can block this?"

With that, he jumped. Airi followed, hopping as high as she could. Aomine dunked forcefully, hanging from the ring for a while before letting go soon after Airi landed. His feet met the ground with a loud sound. Airi watched him pick up the ball and spin it around his finger.

"Admit it. I'm too strong for you. You'll never be my partner."

Airi had heard that a lot, so it didn't affect her as much. But she did begin to doubt herself. What if he was right? What if she could never be anything like his old shadow, Kuroko Tetsuya?

One thing was for sure. Airi would train hard during vacations until she had completely developed her own set of skills.

After practice, Airi stayed in the gym, staring at the hoop. She imagined herself running towards it. Only five seconds left in the game. She would make it past her opponents. Jump and dunk. The buzzer would buzz. The crowd would go wild. Her teammates would congratulate her loudly. Aomine would smirk at her, and ruffle her hair, or give her a fist bump. Or wrap his arm around her shoulders and lean his weight on her to say 'congrats' in his own way.

Airi smiled to herself, mostly because of how silly her daydream was.

"Oi, you gonna stay here and smile like an idiot all night?"

The harsh voice was unmistakable. She shook her head and took a step forward.

"Tch. I wonder why we're even giving you a chance. It's not like you have anything to prove that you haven't already proved, which is your weakness."

Airi walked past him and did her best to ignore his words. She wasn't weak. Maybe she had nothing to prove, but she was not weak.

Ss soon as she reached the girl's bathroom, Airi took out her phone and dialed Sakurai's number. He picked up the phone after the second ring.

"Moshi-moshi."

"Ryou-kun. Are you already gone?"

"No, actually. I'm standing by the gates."

"Good. Wait for me please. I know I am not supposed to do this but I need help. I'll tell you everything, just please wait for me."

"H-Hai."

Airi hung up. She wasn't supposed to be doing this. But it wasn't as if Aomine would find out. Not to mention Sakurai was her best friend. She could trust him.

* * *

Voilà! Okay so this chapter turned out weird, I know. I'll try to make next one better. Airi's special ability will be revealed very soon, so stay tuned.

Until next time!

~AHAL


	8. Chapter 8

Hello! Okay so chapter 8 takes place during vacations. Thought I'd show Airi and Sakurai's friendship some love and write about various things they'd do during break. This one can be considered part of the story or not, it's as you want. Honestly, I think I just wrote it for fun. And sorry if Sakurai is OOC.

To Guest: if this fiction is boring, why did you bother reading it? Why did you bother commenting on it? But I do thank you for your comment.

Disclaimer : I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

Monday October 26th

* * *

Airi woke up to the feeling of something soft caressing her cheek. Still half asleep, she leaned into the touch. Seconds later, she cracked her eyelids open and the blurry sight of a head with long, wavy black hair loomed into view. Even though she didn't have her glasses on, she could still make out wide opened eyes and a smile so horrifyingly wide she saw teeth.

Airi yelped, rolled off her bed and fell on the cold, hard ground with a loud 'thump'. She sat up and rubbed the back of her head as fits of giggles erupted from her sister.

"Kira! What was that for?"

"Ah, that was priceless. Now, rise and shine sweetie! Your boyfriend is here."

Airi groaned, groping for her glasses which she'd left on the nightstand. When her fingertips grazed them, she reached for them and placed them on her nose. "Ryou-kun is here so early?"

"It's almost eleven. Better get your lazy ass off the ground and into the bathroom. Wouldn't want your boyfriend to get annoyed would you?"

"Shut it, Kira!" Airi said, blushing. "Wonder why mom asks you to wake me up anyway."

"Obviously because I'm the best at it."

Airi stood up and was surprised to find Kira holding an outfit. Baggy pants and a knitted sweater. Said girl was grinning a compassionate grin.

"C'mon, it was a joke. Here, I picked this out for you."

"Thanks."

"No problem. Now hurry."

With that, Kira left. Airi shook her head in fond exasperation. Her sister could be impossible at times, but she could also be nice when she wanted to.

One warm shower later, Airi got dressed, rushed down the stairs and spotted Sakurai sitting on a sofa in the living room, eyes set on the TV.

She got an apple and bit in it before heading for the boy. "Morning," she greeted.

Sakurai turned to her and smiled a little, cheeks dusted with his signature slight blush. He got to his feet. "Morning Airi-kun."

Airi remembered how, on Friday, she had explained to Sakurai she wanted to take one day out of the whole week and train with him. The boy didn't seem to mind at all. Besides, it would be like old days, when he coached her on his free time.

"Let's go."

Airi spun around, threw the rest of the apple in the trash can, grabbed her small backpack, slipped on her shoes and waited for Sakurai. They bid goodbye to the young girl's mom and sister and left the house before Kira could start making any 'kissing faces'.

They walked to the bus stop where they waited for the next available bus. There was a comfortable silence for a while, only interrupted by the sound of cars passing by.

"Hey Airi-kun? I don't mean to invade your private life but, where's your father?"

"He's gone."

Sakurai 'eep'ed and bowed several times while apologizing profusely.

"N-No, that's not what I meant!" Airi shook her hands frantically. Sakurai stared at her and waited for an explanation, feeling relieved.

"He's a business man, meaning he travels often and doesn't always have time for us. Even though we do video chat from time to time, it's not the same as seeing him in real life."

A cold breeze blew. Airi ducked her head, shivering. Sakurai rubbed his arms and let out a small breath. It was so cold.

"I'm still sorry to hear that. I shouldn't have asked."

"It's fine. I don't get to talk about my dad often so I guess it kind of makes me feel better."

The bus came then. The two climbed inside and took two seats near the doors. The engine started and off went the vehicle. Trees, houses and pedestrians loomed in and out of view.

"So what do we do today?" Sakurai asked.

"Hm. Well we can go to the mall in the town's center. Not necessarily for shopping, just to hang out, you know?"

He nodded and fell silent for the rest of the ride.

* * *

The mall was very crowded that day by shoppers and friends alike. Airi was a bit surprised. She had never seen so many people rushing here and there. The talking and screaming filled her ears. People bumped into her and Sakurai as they hurried past them, and Airi gritted her teeth when pain trickled into her arms.

Sakurai took her hand and dragged her away. Understanding his intentions, Airi willed her legs to function again. She spotted a glasses shop and gestured to her friend. He understood and followed her inside.

Thank God there weren't nearly as many people there. Airi smiled, feeling at ease in an environment she was familiar with.

Sakurai watched her pick up a pair of sunglasses to try on. He had to laugh at how ridiculous she looked. The sunglasses were too big for her face and made her look like a total goof.

"You like?" she asked, striking a pose.

He laughed even more, placing his hand over his mouth to stifle his fit. Airi chuckled and took them off, taking a pair of light brown, circular glasses with bear ears on top. Sakurai contained yet another wave of laughter. Those ones were so childish she wondered how one could wear them.

Airi put on her regular glasses, took another pair of sunglasses and put them on Sakurai's nose. He blinked in surprise. The young girl stared at him; he stared back. She burst out laughing. Sakurai checked it out in the small mirror next to the stand. He immediately took them off.

"I don't like these ones. Let's see. . . Oh this looks nice."

He tried on a rectangular pair. They were a warm coffee color that made his hair stand out more. The rims were black and had tiny skeletons on them. Airi nodded. She wasn't a professional when it came to fashion, that she would admit. But it didn't mean she couldn't tell when something looked nice on someone.

"I agree. C'mon I'll pay for you."

"Huh? N-No, it's okay, r—"

"I insist."

The young girl snatched the object from his hands and made a beeline for the cashier. Sakurai went after her a second too late, just as the man handed her change. He slumped over and reluctantly accepted the sunglasses.

"You didn't have to, you know?"

"Consider it as my gift to you."

The two left the shop and found another one where plush toys and teddy bears were sold. Children were everywhere, as well as a few teenagers. Sakurai inspected the shop carefully then led his friend to the biggest teddy bears. Pandas, tigers, fish. . .

Airi's eyes widened. "Wow. These are bringing back so many childhood memories."

She passed in front of a few and settled for the one she thought was probably the cutest. It was a snow white bunny with a colorful headband around its head. A blue jacket with metal buttons was wrapped around its shoulders and it wore shorts with ripped ends. The bunny itself was holding a basketball, the other hand seemingly waving.

The smaller versions of that same bunny were arranged on the side, and more than half of it was gone. Only five remained.

Airi couldn't keep her eyes off of it. "Ryou-kun, what if— Ryou-kun?"

Airi looked around for her friend. He was nowhere to be found. Where could he be? Had he left without her? The young girl felt panic rise to her throat. Right when she was going to call out for him, Sakurai returned, holding one of the miniature versions of the bunny. Relief washed over her.

"Don't do that again, please. And thank you," she said, taking the bunny and hugging it tightly.

He rubbed his neck, apologizing for disappearing on her like that.

* * *

It was around five when the two left the mall, sipping on milkshakes. The sun had begun setting and the cold had worsened. Airi shivered, slipping the straw out of her mouth for a mere moment.

"I'll walk you home if you want," Sakurai proposed.

"Oh no it's fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I don't want you to catch a cold."

"Alright. So when do you think you'll be ready to practice?"

"Let's say, Thursday, at the court next to your house."

"Sounds good. I had a great time by the way."

"So did I. I'll see you around Ryou-kun!"

"Bye Airi-kun!"

With that, the two friends parted and went their separate ways. Airi replayed the events of the day in her mind endlessly. This was definitely what she needed. Some time with Sakurai to keep her head free of Momoi, basketball, Aomine and Fu, Ku and Su.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed!

Until next time!

~AHAL


	9. Chapter 9

Monday, November 3rd

* * *

Vacations were over, and school was back in session. The hallways were crowded with girls squealing and running to hug each other, and guys watching them, amused, while playing it 'cool.' A few students were missing. Some were still on vacations, others had enjoyed their last week at Touou, which was the week before.

Since it was now early November, it was if the cold had decided to show what it was truly capable of. Going outside with no warm coat whatsoever would be foolish, unless one wanted to catch a cold.

Airi pushed her glasses up her nose while impatiently waiting for the teacher. She drew in deep breaths and payed no mind people bumping into her. Her bruises had healed during their nine days out of school and were now mere light spots.

She noticed Momoi and Aomine, who had just waded their way through the crowd of students. Not wanting anything to do with them this early, she turned around and pretended to be captivated by the door. It soon wasn't pretending anymore as she contemplated every small details she had not noticed before. Small scratches around the nob, a tiny hole in the wood, fading drawings.

So lost as she was, she didn't see, or feel, the teacher approaching. It wasn't until the teacher yelled to group her students that she snapped out of her daze and stepped aside. The door opened, the students rushed in. Airi took her usual seat in the far back. The teacher didn't waste time with greetings and jumped straight to where they had left off their previous lesson.

* * *

Lunch break

* * *

At lunch, Airi feasted on a few sushis. Momoi approached her.

"Hey," she said.

"Hi."

"Our opposing team will be here soon for the practice game. You could maybe use this time to change into your uniform and practice."

"Uniform?" Airi repeated.

"Yeah, the team uniforms. They were ordered a week ago. I didn't ask for your size, but I hope you're okay with medium."

The brown haired girl shrugged and figured it'd be best if she left her bag in the classroom.

"Go ahead, I'll be with you soon."

Airi did as told and waited for her in the bathroom. Five minutes later, the manager was back with the Touou uniform. Airi took it and ran her eyes over it. She tried it on and checked it out in the mirror all the while Momoi told her about Kaijou high. The uniform was a bit big, but it fit. It was perfect. Then, something hit her.

"My contact lenses! I left them in my bag."

"It's too late now. Kaijou high has arrived."

Airi sighed and followed Momoi.

Kaijou high. The name was strangely familiar. Where had she seen it before? Oh right! In that article. She'd read that one of the Generation of Miracles had joined this school, Kise Ryouta. The part-time model copy cat. He could copy any technique with a single look. What a thrill.

The gym was unusually crowded by girls. Girls everywhere, squealing, blushing, screaming, all here for one person. Kise. Said boy was signing autographs in a corner.

"There, and here's another one."

Airi and Momoi pushed through the crowd in order to at least get to the benches, where the rest of the team was gathered. All of them, except for Aomine. That, however, wasn't their main concern at the moment. How were they going to play their game with all these fangirls around?

"KISE!" a voice bellowed.

The blond was kicked in the back by a black haired boy. The model got up quickly and let crocodile tears flow from his eyes. "Kasamatsu-senpai! That hurt!"

"It will hurt even more if you don't show your fans the exit."

Kise did as he was told. The girls went for the bleachers instead, giggling between themselves. Kaijou high's coach came out then and talked with Imayoshi. Since Harasawa was now temporarily absent, he was in charge.

"And I thought Aominecchi would be here." Kise waved enthusiastically. "Hi Momoicchi!"

"Ki-kun. It's nice to see you again."

"It sure is. You got newbies I see."

"Hai."

Momoi introduced him to Fu, Ku and Su and Airi last. The young girl was wiping her spectacles when the cheery voice resounded.

"But isn't that a girl's name?"

"Probably because I am a girl," she said, placing the glasses on the bridge of her nose.

Kise's face turned into one of confusion as he tried to comprehend what had happened. One second he was facing a normal boy sitting on the bench, the next he was facing a girl. Airi felt uncomfortable under the scrutinity and squirmed a little.

"Oi, we'rl stalting the game! You bettel hullyy up!" Hayakawa yelled, his speaking problems causing half of what he said to be unintelligible.

"Calm down Hayakawa. There are ladies here," Moriyama said, eyes sparkling as he blew kisses to the fangirls.

Since Aomine wasn't here yet, Su replaced him. The Touou team consisted of Imayoshi, Wakamatsu, Susa, Su and Sakurai while the Kaijou team consisted of Kise, Moriyama, Hayakawa, Kasamatsu and Kobori.

Airi briefly stared at the benched players. Nakurama noticed her staring and spun to face her, one eyebrow raised. She blushed in embarrassment and focused on the game.

Takeuchi blew in the whistle and the game began. Imayoshi got the ball and passed it to Wakamatsu. The latter ran for the opposite net, made it past Kobori and dunked. Two points. Touou was in the lead.

Kasamatsu raised his index finger and ran forward. Su blocked his way, arms extended. Kasamatsu kept the ball close by his side as Su attempted to steal it. He side stepped the latter and passed to Kise. The blond passed the defense and dunked in the exact same way as Wakamatsu. It was a tie.

Airi watched, listening to Momoi muttering to herself The manager was analyzing the scene and trying to pierce through the game. She figured that Kaijou high, after their defeat last year, must have a trick up their sleeves.

The brown haired girl herself took in the pairs. Moriyama, the amazing three pointer, versus Sakurai and his quick release shot. Wakamatsu and Kobori, the fierce dunkers. Kasamatsu and Imayoshi, the captains. And Kise and Su. Kise had to compete against Su for now, but the girl could only imagine what would happen if he was going against Aomine. A shiver ran down her back at the mere thought.

There were only eight minutes left in the first quarter. Kaijou led by 20 points to 17, thanks to Moriyama's shots. Momoi wasn't worried that much. Not at the moment anyway. She knew that in time, this quarter would come to a tie, judging the rigor with which each team was playing. And she was right. 36 to 36

They were granted a five minute break, during which Takeuchi encouraged his team.

"We're not into trouble for now," Imayoshi said, drinking water. "But it doesn't mean we should relent. We ought to keep it up until Aomine comes back. That lazy bastard only shows up halfway through the game anyway."

They nodded and waited for the break to come to an end. The second quarter began. Sakurai scored the first three points, putting Touou in the lead. The score quickly changed to 50 to 49, due to Kise copying each technique under hand, which he quickly got bored of. He wanted something more excting.

Six minutes into second quarter, heavy footsteps were heard. They all turned towards the doorway to see Aomine walk in, hands behind his head, yawning loudly.

"Mm. I slept well."

"Aominecchi!" Kise shouted, more happy than relieved to see his old partner.

The navy blue haired boy opened his eyes, setting them on the boy disinterestedly. "Ryouta."

"Oi, there's no time for that. Aomine get ready. You're in for third quarter," Imayoshi said.

Aomine had already put on his uniform. He 'tch'ed and leaned against the wall, arms crossed, and watched the game. Those news had pleased Kise to the point where he purposely missed his copied shots and dunks, leaving Touou in the lead with 64 to 57. He wanted a real challenge, so he let his teammates make up for his lost points. Another five minute break ensued.

Takeuchi scolded his ace player. "Just what was that Kise?"

"Ah, coach. I was just so excited at the idea of playing against Aominecchi, I guess I got distracted."

Kasamatsu whacked him across the head. It was such a patent lie, he saw right through it. "Get your shit together."

"Ouch, Kasamatsu-senpai!" Kise whined.

Meanwhile, Imayoshi demanded for Su to stay on the bench and for Aomine to enter the game. The ace merely nodded and stared at Airi. The young girl gulped nervously and ignored him. The five minutes were once more up. Third quarter was on.

Now, with Aomine in the game, Kise was taking things more seriously. He was entirely ready to face his old teammate, ready to give it his best. The game started with Aomine passing through the defense and making a fade-away. Kise copied his technique, feeling adrenaline surging through his veins.

Back and forth, it was an intense battle between the two Miracles. Aomine was not impressed by Kise's copying. He might've improved, but it still presented flaws and risks, and mentioning them would take out the fun in it. By the end of third quarter, the scores were a tie. 98 to 98.

Aomine suddenly grinned. Although the idea didn't please him that much, he knew he could always take pleasure in Kise's frustration afterwards. So he turned towards Imayoshi.

"Let her in," he said, pointing his thumb towards Airi.

Everyone fell silent. Even Fukusu had stopped snickering among each other.

"Beg your pardon?" the captain finally said.

"Let. Her. In," Aomine repeated more forcefully, for he hated to repeat himself.

"And who do you think you are, going off and ordering people around?" Wakamatsu shouted.

"No, leave it. Very well. Sakurai, you'll be benched."

The brown haired boy glanced at Airi, who was equally confused by Aomine's sudden behavior. Wasn't he the one who wanted her out of the team? Who wanted to hurt her so bad? Who wanted to break her until she wouldn't be able to piece herself together?

She didn't complain though. Nervously, she followed the rest of the team on the court. Kise's eyes widened.

"Wait, so you mean, she's not a lucky fangirl who got to sit on the bench? She is actually a player? I thought Momoicchi was joking!"

"Me too!"

"Kise, Hayakama, focus!" Kasamatsu scolded.

And so began the last quarter. Imayoshi passed the ball to Airi. She was immediately cornered by Hayakama and Nakamura, who was replacing Moriyama. She crouched a bit lower then propelled herself in the air. The two jumped after her. Calculating her every moves, she landed before they did and quickly made it to the net, only to have Kasamatsu and Kiboro block her.

With a deep breath, Airi hopped once more. The two, as had their partners, jumped, thinking she was going to shoot. Instead, Airi lowered her arm, the one holding the round object, and threw the ball behind her before landing. Aomine intercepted the ball and dunked.

They returned to their positions. Kise was given the ball and, instinctively, tried to copy Airi's technique. Keyword: tried. His attempt presented so many flaws it was almost ridiculous.

As the game went by, Airi took more risks with techniques she'd made up herself during vacations, with Sakurai's help of course.

The sideways pass; while hopping, Airi would throw the ball sideways, allowing it to fly past her opponent's left or right side.

The upwards pass; if the opponent was smart enough to abstain from jumping directly after she hopped, she would pass the ball upwards. It would make an arch and end in one of her teammates' hands.

The board pass; this one was without a doubt the riskiest. She would hop and wait for her opponent to jump after her. Afterwards, she'd land before they did, run for the net, hop once more and throw the ball. It would bounce off the headboard of the net and fly backwards. There was a fifty-fifty chance it would either be caught by an opponent or a teammate.

And as the game went on, Airi gradually understood why Aomine had wanted her in the game. It was now crystal clear. Four minutes left; Kise was getting very frustrated. The score was 125 to 119 and he still couldn't copy perfectly the hop pass techniques.

"Why can't I do it!"

Aomine smirked cockily and pushed Airi forwards. "She might have an explanation to that."

Airi yelped a little. She looked at Aomine but not for long. "In reality, Kise-kun, anyone can hop. Kids, teenagers and adults alike. However, because you are taller and much heavier than I am, you cannot copy my hop passes with as much perfection as you copy others' style of playing. "

Kise's face was priceless. Aomine chuckled for a good while.

Airi didn't take nearly as much pleasure watching his expression and directly returned to her position. At least she had proved useful with her passes. The game ended with 130 to 128. Touou won.

Kaijou high was pretty upset. Even though it wasn't an official match, it had felt like it. Takeuchi gathered his team. After a small word with Imayoshi, he left. Kise stayed behind, however, to have a word with Aomine and Airi.

"Hogiwara, was it? I'm glad I was able to play against you. Believe it or not, I have my own way of playing. And in the Winter Cup, it'll be Aominecchi and you against me, got it? I'd love to see what your full potential is, if you have one that is."

"Can't wait til then," Aomine said.

Kise let out another chuckle then left when he heard Kasamatsu shouting it was time to go. Airi shuddered. One second he was cheerful, the other he'd turned so. . . serious.

Aomine scoffed. "You better have more of those tricks ready by then."

Airi turned around and saw the team going off to change, basking in Imayoshi's congratulating words.

"Good game," the navy blue haired boy forced out, exiting the gym.

Airi stayed rooted in her spot, alone, thinking about everything that had occurred. She smiled to herself.

_Looks like someone else took advantage of these vacations._

* * *

I'm done! Get ready for more small talk between Airi and Aomine, which will eventually turn into friendship. Until next time!

~AHAL


	10. Chapter 10

Tuesday November 4th

* * *

The next day, Airi was still thinking about the practice game. How Aomine had bothered asking for her to join fourth quarter, how Kise had challenged them, how Aomine had 'congratulated' her for her play. . .

_Gah!_

She shook her head frantically and pressed her palms against her ears, trying to calm the thoughts raging in her head. Now wasn't the time to zone out. She had to focus on what was happening, for fear of getting a ball straight to the head, because right now, Aomine was a beast in action. Even Wakamatsu couldn't hold him back.

When he wanted to, he could really go at it.

He was the main focus of the game, stealing the ball, running past his teammates, dunking as if nothing else in the world mattered. He was a monster, and no one could stop him. It was just him and the net, and whoever dared oppose him wouldn't like the results.

Airi knew Imayoshi was as curious as she and Momoi were. First, Aomine had shown up early to practice. Second, he was practicing as if this was the real thing, as if he were in an actual game.

"I've never seen him like this," Momoi said when the brown haired girl walked up to the bench, tired of attempting to play under these circumstances.

Since Aomine seemed to be doing so well on his own, she didn't see any reason to try to get the ball and pass to him. So engrosses as he was, he would probably just steal the basketball from her, again.

"What do you mean?" Airi asked, panting.

"Dai-chan never took practice so seriously. Something must have happened. Either he's frustrated, or someone provoked him."

Someone provoking him was the most likely answer, considering he had a fiery temper. Who would have gotten enough courage to provoke him though?

An imaginary light bulb popped on top of Airi's head. "Kise-kun."

"Hmm?"

"Yesterday, after the practice game. Kise-kun had a word with us. He was thrilled at the idea of playing against us. Did you accompany Aomine-kun home?"

"I did."

"And nothing seemed off then, right?"

"No."

"My theory is that Kise-kun called Aomine-kun and they had a long heated discussion concerning the Winter Cup."

Momoi pondered over the theory for a second. It was plausible. Although she didn't believe Kise, the kind, cheerful soul she knew, could do such a thing, she had to admit that there was a fifty percent chance Airi could be right.

"I'll ask Dai-chan about it. Your theory is well thought."

"Logic has always been my domain," came the shrugged response.

Practice ended. Aomine stormed out of the room, immediately followed by Momoi. Sakurai approached Airi, wiping sweat off his face with the hem of his shirt. His face was red from intensively trying to keep up with Aomine.

"What's with him?" he asked.

"I'll explain later. If you finish changing before I do, can you please wait for me by the gates?

"Sure."

* * *

The streets were still bustling with life. Cars passed by, honking at each other. Lights flashed the pedestrians who were rushing home. This was the busiest hour of the evening.

"That's what I think happened," Airi concluded.

"Interesting theory indeed. From what I've seen and heard last year, Kise and Aomine-kun used to be good friends."

"When the team dissolved it caused tension to build between the two, thus causing an outburst on both sides."

"And after his loss, he called Aomine-kun and told him he wasn't going to loose at the Winter Cup. And then ensued a heated discussion."

"Hey, you're not bad at logic either, you know?" Airi remarked.

"Eh. I do a lot of math, so naturally, I'm good with logic, with all due modesty."

"No worries. I think it's great that you're confident about your abilities. Not too confident though. That would turn you into Aomine-kun."

Sakurai laughed at her comment. There was no chance he could turn into the self centered guy.

"Let's not get our hopes up. Aomine-kun might be upset for another reason," she said.

"You're right."

* * *

Wednesday November 5th

* * *

"No, Dai-chan didn't fight with Ki-kun. He had a fight with his dad."

"Oh." Airi was half relieved to hear this. Not wanting to dig any further into the guy's personal life, she jogged over to the gym, leaving a slightly confused Momoi behind.

Aomine had seemingly cooled down overnight, which was much better. Imayoshi turned her way.

"You're one minute late Hogiwara."

"Sumimasen."

Aomine snorted and let a cocky smirk stretch onto his lips. It was situations like this that amused him the most. When someone was being reprimanded and all they had to offer was a pathetic 'sorry'.

"I want you to stay ten minutes after everyone leaves practice. We need to review a few things."

Airi shuddered not only at the thought, but also at the fact that Imayoshi's creepy aura had literally doubled. Aomine laughed at her facial expression.

"You'll be staying too, Aomine."

He stopped laughing and glared hard at their captain. His mouth opened, as if to say something back. However, the sound of Momoi blowing in the whistle cut him off. He growled low in his throat and kept his mouth shut. It would be vain anyway. Imayoshi never went back on his decisions.

After practice, as said, the two stayed an additional ten minutes. Imayoshi made them run five laps around the court before gathering both of them.

"Alright. I'm glad you could stay. It's about time I personally trained you two."

Aomine felt an 'oration' coming up. He let out a sigh and placed one arm over Airi's shoulder, leaning half of his weight on her. She flinched and did her best to support him, because even half of his weight was pretty darn heavy.

"I've noticed how your plays coordinate with each other's. Hogiwara, you pass to Aomine more than often. That could prove useful in actual games, considering he's our ace player. So from now on, I'd like it if you two stayed after practice more often so we can work on that."

"What're we going to do?" Airi asked, one eye shut close under the effort of supporting Aomine's weight, who was gradually leaning on her woth his full weight.

"I was getting to that. We're going to practice the teamwork between you. Touou has never relied on teamwork before, but the partnership between the both of you could really save our asses during the Winter Cup."

"She said she wants to become my shadow," Aomine said, standing up straight.

Airi massaged her shoulder, teeth gritted. There went a new bruise. And here she thought her arms would be safe from the torture.

_I __still __have__ a long way to go._

"I don't care what she wants to be, you two have to play together. That's what we're going to practice today along with the other days and— Oh dear, we have already wasted three minutes of our given ten minutes. Let's get to work."

For the remaining seven minutes, Imayoshi instructed them on how to position themselves in order to pass, and receive the passes. The latter was important for Aomine since Airi's hop passes could easily be intercepted by anyone. He would only get a second to get the ball before the opponent recovered from their shock. By the end of the extra training session, they had not learned much. The captain promised they would before the Winter Cup.

Airi realized she was running late for class. After all, it was ten minutes past lunch time. She ran to the bathroom all the while thinking of how much she probably missed. Aomine took his time, honestly not wanting to go to class at all.

* * *

Thursday November 6th

* * *

Airi didn't know how it began, when it began, or why it began. All she remembered was having the urge to buy herself a cereal bar that morning. Subsequently, she ended up buying a lot more than just one. As she ate the bars, she realized too late it would soon become an obsession, and a bad one. That would mean she'd go back to being a picky eater. But at the moment, she couldn't care less.

At lunch, she dumped her bento for the cereal bars, and bothered bringing the remaining treats with her to practice. She thew a wrapper in the trash can and prepared to open another one when a tanned hand came up from behind her and snatched it from her hands. Airi spun around and met face to chest with Aomine. The latter lazily stared at the bar, unwrapped it and took a bite.

"Tsk. Not bad."

She watched him eat it, ready to step away from him when another hand snatched yet another one of her precious bars. Wakamatsu wasted no time in eating the treat. Soon enough, the whole team had had a taste of the cereal bars, except for Momoi and Sakurai.

Airi sadly ate the last one and swore never to bring her food to practice again.

"Thanks for the treats Hogiwara," Imayoshi thanked, even though he knew she hadn't willingly offered it to them.

"It wasn't for you," Airi mumbled under her breath.

"Alright! Let's practice!"

Slightly grumpy, Airi took her position. In a flash, Wakamatsu was zooming past her. By the time she had recovered, the blonde had already performed a fade away. She picked the ball from under the net and ran to the opposite side of the court. She was immediately blocked by Susa. Airi hopped and, locating Aomine, executed a sideways pass. Susa though, having experienced her many passes during the practice game, lowered his arm in time and caught it.

Airi let gravity bring her down and watched her senpai go past Fu, Ku and Su's defense and dunk.

Imayoshi ran up to her. "This is exactly the kind of thing that could happen during a real game. Stay ten minutes after practice, like yesterday."

She nodded, now understanding why Imayoshi wanted to improve her passes to Aomine's; so they could be one. On the other hand, she couldn't exactly complain even if she wanted to. He was her captain, and her senpai. Whatever he asked her to do, she had to do, even if it meant missing ten minutes of class. Plus, this could be a great occasion to get closer to Aomine.

When the team had left, Imayoshi stood in front of his two kouhai, arms crossed. "I won't waste any time today. Airi I'll teach you first how to aim better, which passes are apt to the situation you're in and little signs to tell Aomine which one you're going for. Last five minutes, Aomine I'll teach you how to position yourself depending on which pass she is going for. Let's go!"

* * *

Okay so I am planning on doing a time skip in next chapter because, in all honesty, the Winter Cup has been taking over my head. So. Many. Plans! So I hope you guys will stick around long enough. Because starting next chapter the official games begin. Until next time!

AHAL


	11. Chapter 11

Hello dear readers. We're down to chapter 11 already. As I said in my last author's note, there's going to be a time skip in this chapter. The Winter Cup couldn't wait. And a small, minimalist, minor, detail, Hanamiya will appear in the Winter Cup.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

The Winter Cup was approaching. Touou high was practicing harder than ever. School days, week ends. No day was spared, no one was spared. With their coach back, things had gone exhilarating. Imayoshi had stopped giving Airi and Aomine the private lessons now in favor of training with the rest of the team.

Reporters, who'd come to interview them, ended up staying three minutes later than she they should have to try and figure out Airi's true gender. In the end, she was nicknamed the 'bi-gendered player', which she didn't appreciate.

The team had many other practice games, and won all of them. Needless to say, Touou high was ready.

* * *

Monday November 17th

* * *

Only two days until the Winter Cup. Airi was so excited she thought her chest would burst open. Three months worth of training for one event that was so close yet so out of reach. She heard the Generation of Miracles and their respective teams would be there. That alone sent shudders down her back. Not the nervous kind.

Imayoshi had had the time to give her and Aomine five private lessons. He said he expected them to continue on their own, during practice which they did. Over that short period of time, something grew between Aomine and her. It wasn't exactly friendship; it was keen to friendship. It was. . . The start of something great.

Chewing on the last piece of her cereal bar, the young girl turned the next page in her history book. She was currently in the library, trying to study for an oncoming exam. Basketball wasn't the only important thing. Sometimes, she'd make excuses to be able to study and get good grades, and today was one of those days. That, mixed with the intensive training, was tiring her. Black spots had began forming under her eyes, thankfully hidden by her glasses, which she took more and more often to practice.

At first, her mom had worried it might render her sick. And it did, for the span of a Saturday and a Sunday. After that, she was back on her feet.

Airi wondered how Momoi, Sakurai or even their senpais kept up. It was hard. Perhaps she could ask them for help?

Figuring she'd be better off studying at home, Airi closed the heavy book and exited the library, with the firm intention of going to practice to at least watch.

The boys were getting ready to go change. They were sweating heavily, which was a sign of another session of intensive practicing.

Imayoshi was the first one to see her. "Hogiwara. Good timing."

Airi was quite surprised. Had she missed an important announcement? "What is it Imayoshi-senpai?"

"Coach wanted me to tell you this. You now have to change with the boys."

Airi choked on her own saliva, eyes wide in disbelief. She wheezed and drew in several intakes of breath. Imayoshi did not just say what she thought she heard him say.

"I hope you realize there won't be separated locker rooms at the Winter Cup. You have to get used to changing with us."

She felt her heart skip a beat. It was as if the air had been punched out of her lungs. Okay, maybe she was being overly dramatic, but who wouldn't?

"Oh and be here for after-school practice. No excuses will be accepted," he added before brushing past her.

Airi gulped. In a way, she knew she had it coming. There was no way she could get used to changing with boys in a span of two days. Unless. . .

* * *

After-school practice

* * *

The team came in the locker rooms and were met with the sight of Airi, already dressed in her uniform, tying her shoelaces. She looked up as soon as the door opened, her cheeks flushing ever so slightly.

"So this is why you ran out of class so quickly," Momoi said.

"Hai. I figured if I came here early enough, I'd be able to change quickly before your arrival."

"How are you going to manage at the Winter Cup?" Imayoshi asked as he walked towards his locker.

The rest of the team had began changing. Airi kept her eyes down, feeling her heart beat faster. The urge to raise her eyes was strong, yet she resisted.

"Since Aomine-kun shows up only halfway in the game, I'll change after the team."

"Smart."

"Oi Airi," Aomine called out.

Out of instinct, her head snapped upwards. Airi used her fingers to pinch her nose and keep the blood from flowing out. In front of her stood Aomine, shirtless, exposing his perfectly toned upper body. It sure was a sight to faint for.

She immediately stood up and practically dashed out of the locker room, the quantity of blood oozing out of her nose having doubled. Fu, Ku and Su burst out into fits of laughter, and Aomine chuckled silently.

"I guess it worked," he said.

"Hey, the idea was mine, so of course it worked," Fu said.

"Are you kidding? I suggested it first," Ku retorted.

"Sure you did."

"I did!"

"All you do is copy me all day long."

"Do not."

"Do so."

"Hey guys!" Su interrupted. "Let's not get too worked up, okay?"

His two siblings glared at each other instead and went separate ways. Su sighed, frustrated albeit a bit amused. What could he say? This was the usual thing that came with being brothers. Childish fights.

"Oi give me some," Wakamatsu shouted, snatching Sakurai's glass container.

He got in the process of eating the honey lemons, not caring whether he was chewing thoroughly or not. Sakurai sweat dropped and Imayoshi shook his head disapprovingly.

"You should really start bringing your own honey lemons, Wakamatsu."

"Never."

The minute they entered the gym, Harasawa made them do ten laps for being late, while Airi sat and waited for them to be done. She watched them patiently, the image of a shirtless Aomine constantly popping up into her mind. She was no fangirl, and probably never would be, but the picture made her blush furiously.

During practice, Aomine never missed an occasion to tease her about it either. "Did you enjoy the view?" he asked.

They were sitting on the bench, taking a well needed break. Airi was drinking some Pocari Sweat when he asked those five words. She immediately spit out the liquid, coughing while shaking her head furiously.

"Dai-chan, you really shouldn't tease Airi-chan like that," Momoi scolded, hitting the girl's back to help her breathe normally again.

"Let me have my fun. Besides, I'm sure she did enjoy it."

"D-Did not."

"Then why are you blushing?"

"I couldn't breathe!"

"Are you sure?"

"Do I look like I'm joking?"

The rest of the team watched them 'bicker'. It wasn't the first time, though it was their longest one. Usually, they did this during practice, on the court, not out of it. Aomine was always the one to broach the so called bickering. It always ended up in the two of them shouting at each other, not in an angry manner. More like in a 'you're annoying me' and 'deal with it' manner. The team simply loved to watch them. It helped relieve the tension.

"Just admit it. You enjoyed the view."

"If I do, will you stop bothering me?"

Aomine nodded, crossing his fingers behind his back. He wasn't making any promises.

"Fine. I enjoyed the view," Airi mumbled under her breath.

"What was that?"

"I said I enjoyed the view."

"You'll have to speak louder Airi."

"I said, I ENJO—"

"I heard you the first time, just wanted you to repeat yourself."

"Why, you little—!"

Harasawa clapped his hands, announcing the end of their break. Fuming, Airi stood up and took her position on the court. For the entirety of practice, she ignored Aomine, even when she wasn't mad at him anymore. It served him right for being a jerk.

* * *

Well I'll skip their Tuesday practice and go directly to the Winter Cup in next chapter. Until next time!

~AHAL


	12. Chapter 12

Wednesday November 19th

* * *

Finally. Today was the day. The Winter Cup preliminaries. The plan was for the team to have class first then gather up with their belongings in the gym at four pm.

None of them could pay attention in class, not even Imayoshi or Sakurai. Airi was practically bouncing on her chair and Aomine watched her, smirking.

At lunch, she didn't bother eating. She didn't sit either. She walked around the class, not able to do anything else. Her mind was somewhere else.

"Airi-chan, please sit down. I understand you're excited, and we are too," Momoi said.

Airi sat down. Even then, her knees were bouncing on the chair uncontrollably. Aomine laughed at her. This was ridiculous. The usual calm girl, who always sat away from the rest of the class, who always liked to read, had now become a walking ball of excitement.

"I've gathered some data from a good half of the schools that will be present. Shutoku high, where Midorima-kun is. Kaijo high, where Ki-kun is. Seirin high, where Tetsu-chan and Kagami-kun are. Yosen high, where Murasakibara-kun is. Rakuzan high, where Akashi-kun is. The rest of the teams won't be that much of a challenge, don't worry. Although I am pretty worried."

"I understand why. Rakuzan high is, so far, the undefeated team," Airi said.

"No, I was talking about something else. Kirisaki Daichi will be there."

Aomine suddenly tensed up, sitting up straight. His eyes had somehow darkened and his fists clenched and unclenched until his nails left crescent marks in his palms. Airi worried. She hadn't heard about Kirisaki Daichi yet, but if Aomine was acting this way, they couldn't be any good.

As if hearing her unasked question, Momoi said, "Kirisaki Daichi isn't an ordinary team. They rely on cheating."

Airi's knees stopped bouncing.

"I thought the bastards gave up after they were defeated last year."

"Apparently not. And they have new techniques too. The last team they fought in a practice game ended up with four members instead of five. The headboard of one of the hoops had inexplicably fallen on the fifth one's his head and knocked him out."

"Oh my god. . ." Airi said.

Aomine shook his head. "If they know what's good for them, they better stay in their lane."

"Calm down Dai-chan. Who's to say they did something? The headboard could have been rusted."

"Tch. Their gymnasium is in impeccable state. Why would one of the headboards give up during this particular game against this particular team?"

He had a point. Any good school would have the reflex to renovate their material whenever it needed renovation. Everything should be perfect, for security measures. So why would this happen to a perfectly intact headboard?

"Whatever the reason of this accident is, I hope it won't intervene during then game." Airi was now less excited than she'd been moments ago. She wished she hadn't let Momoi tell her about Kirisaki Daichi.

Her blood was boiling with worry. Unconsciously, she reached in her bag, pulled out a bar, unwrapped it and bit in it. It was only when the taste began filling her taste buds that she realized. She raised her arms in desperation.

"Oh great. And I promised myself I would stop eating these."

"Then why'd you bring some?" Aomine said.

"I don't know."

"Well let me tell you what I know. If you don't want them—" He reached over her lap and took one bar from her bag. He held it high up as she tried to reach for it. "I'll have them."

"I-I never said that." Airi crossed her arms and pouted.

Complaining would be useless. Yet she couldn't help but admit inwardly how much she hated when Aomine took the teasing a tad too far. That annoyed her a lot, even when he didn't mean any harm by it.

"Lunch break is going to end in a few minutes Dai-chan. Let Airi-chan eat her cereal bars."

Some more arguing later, the brown haired girl ended up sharing her treats with him. Like always.

After class, the three friends gathered their stuff and headed for the gym. There was silence for a good while. Neither of them knew what to say. What could they say? Everything and anything that could have been put into words had been shown by their previous actions. And they probably would have remained mute if they hadn't heard three familiar screams coming from the gym, followed by an angry voice, familiar as well. Airi flinched. Momoi mouthed a 'uh oh.' Aomine chuckled.

"What did they do this time?" he asked Sakurai as they stepped inside the room.

Fu, Ku and Su were being chased around the court by a very angry looking Wakamatsu.

"They replaced Wakamatsu-senpai's socks with old, used ones."

"That's not something to get worked up about."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry I didn't warn him! I'm sorry—"

"It's okay Sakurai-kun," Momoi said, a nervous smile on her face.

Imayoshi made his appearance then. A long handled messenger bag was hanging from his shoulder, and his smile was wider than usual, if that were possible. "Alright. The bus is ready. Let's go."

"The bus?" Airi repeated dumbly.

"The school has a bus for special occasions, such as field trips or games," Momoi explained.

The brown haired girl nodded and followed the rest of the team, feeling anticipation coursing through her veins.

The bus ride was not very comfortable, or peaceful, for that matter. While Harasawa drove, Momoi, Imayoshi and Susa were elaborating last minute strategies. Aomine and the Fukusu trio were having an all-out arm wrestle and Sakurai and Airi tried to have a conversation over the many loud voices to no avail. But at last, they reached the stadium.

Airi's eyes widened. It was her first time seeing a stadium this huge. Numerous people had gathered and were waiting to pay for tickets at the entrance.

"Let's use the backdoor," their coach said.

The team fell in steps after him. The backdoor was the easiest way to get to the locker rooms, and it seemed like they weren't the only team who figured that out.

"Aominecchi!" Kise shouted loudly while waving at the Touou high ace.

The navy blue haired boy straight out ignored him. His partner, however, hesitantly raised her hand to wave back. Aomine pushed her ahead of him without a word. Airi feigned adjusting her glasses to hide her embarrassment.

As the boys changed, she stayed outside with Momoi.

"We're playing against Nozomi high first for the preliminaries. If we get qualified, we advance to the real Winter Cup, after which our first match will be against Kaijo high."

The short haired girl nodded. As soon as the team was out, she went in to change before they headed for the court. With each step, Airi could feel her heartbeat increase. A cold sweat ran down her spine and her limbs were actually shaking. The cheering of the crowd filled her ears.

Thousands. They were thousands of fans, cheering, screaming, yelling. As she sat on the bench, she noticed the game had begun. Touou was in the lead with a good six points to two.

Fu, Ku and Su were, for once, focusing on the game. The bickering, the jokes, the snickers, it was all gone.

By the end of first quarter they were at 29 to 11. Not bad.

"So we've decided it won't be necessary for Aomine to show up. He can sleep around if he wants to. Same with you Airi. We can handle these guys without a problem. But if you want to play, we'll sub you in during third quarter," Harasawa said.

She nodded, her knees bouncing like they had in class, at lunch break. Of course she wanted to play. Even if Aomine wasn't there, she could make her passes work with about any team member.

Second quarter wasn't of much difficulty either, and they ended up with a score of 50 to 21. Big gap. And Touou wasn't making it any easier either. Just as Airi was about to be subbed in and Sakurai benched, Aomine showed up. The crowd cheered even louder.

"If she plays, I'm playing too. The only one she can pass to is me."

That's how Susa was benched to let Aomine in. The two didn't take it easy on Nozomi high. They gave it their all. Airi performed her sideways pass more than once. Thanks to Imayoshi, she now knew how to pass to Aomine with precision. They kept it up until fourth quarter and let Fu and Ku in. The game ended with a score of 108 to 59 in favor of Touou high. The two teams bowed after the game.

"Good game everyone. You can go ahead and change, and if you want we'll watch the others play."

They sat on seats in the bleachers reserved specifically for teams. Airi and Momoi joined them later on. The two each took seats on either side of Aomine and got comfortable. Kaijo high played first. As expected, they won.

Then came Shutoku high. Midorima's three points were simply unbelievable. Quick, flawless, unstoppable beast-like shots.

"He's improved," Aomine remarked.

"W-What do you mean, improved?"

Fear had all of a sudden bubbled up within Airi. The mere thought of the significance of Aomine's words scared her. Though, she had to admit, her curiosity was piqued.

"I mean what I mean."

She fell back in her seat, half of her body off the chair. Momoi giggled at her reaction.

"Don't worry. If we train hard enough, we'll beat them."

Shutoku high was qualified. Afterwards, it was Seirin high. Airi sat up straight, gripping the edge of the armrests. There he was. No, there _they _were. Upon focusing, she caught a glimpse of blue hair by the tall red haired guy. Kagami Taiga and Kuroko Tetsuya. She was finally going to see them play. And when the game began, she was practically holding her breath.

They didn't start off easy. From the first few minutes, the pace was quick. Pass after pass, dunk after dunk, shots after shots. Airi didn't know which bothered her the most. The fact that her eyes couldn't keep up or the fact that she couldn't localize Kuroko and study his technique.

Either way, she couldn't wait to play against them.

When they were qualified, she had to keep herself from screaming in joy. Momoi noticed she had difficulties keeping in her emotions.

She slightly nudged the brown haired girl. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," came the strained response.

And her voice wasn't strained because of her excitement anymore. It was because Rakuzan high had arrived. She could feel their opponents' fear, stronger than their will to win. Even Aomine somehow stiffened in his seat.

"There's no doubt we'll be competing against them," he said, his voice low.

As if sensing their discomfort, Harasawa grouped his team, announcing it was time to go. It would be no use staying to watch Rakuzan high defeat their opponents single-handedly. That would only discourage them.

Airi glanced one last time at the court and could swear she saw Akashi looking their way. More precisely, looking at her and Aomine. She gulped loudly and turned around.

The Winter Cup wouldn't be so easy after all.

* * *

This chapter was kind of messed up. Well I hope you enjoyed. Touou high will first go against Kaijo high. I'm already working on it. Until next time!

~AHAL

Song I listened to while writing this:

Body Electric by Lana Del Rey


	13. Chapter 13

Thursday November 20th

* * *

Aomine lightly flicked Airi's forehead. The young girl immediately let out a small yelp and fell off her seat, hitting the back of the bus. She stood up and glared at the tanned male.

"What?"

"You didn't get enough sleep last night."

"Why do you care?" she asked, standing up and rejoining her seat behind his.

His bored eyes never left her, even when she tried to sleep again. Airi could feel them drilling holes through her. Unable to take it any longer, she snapped at him.

"What?"

"You're very grumpy when you're tired."

"Let me get some rest already."

"You were thinking about Tetsu, weren't you?"

At this, Airi lost all will of going to sleep. She stared back at Aomine, her hazel orbs shining with curiosity. Aomine smirked. Attention grabbed.

"I saw how much you were focused on their game yesterday."

"And? It's only fair that I start studying their play."

"You didn't do that for the other teams though," he remarked.

"When did you become this talkative?"

"When did you become so grumpy?"

"Where's a monster truck when you need one," she mumbled under her breath.

Aomine was fairly amused and wasn't ready to quit annoying her. Grumpy Airi was so much funner to tease. He made a mental note to give her a reason to go to bed late once in a while. That should do the trick.

"Can I just rest?" she asked, her eyelids already shutting close.

"Too late."

The bus parked. With a frustrated groan, Airi grabbed her bag and followed her teammates out the bus. Momoi frowned and turned to her childhood friend, arms crossed over her chest.

"Dai-chan, what did you do to Airi-chan?"

"I didn't do anything. She happens to be grumpy because she didn't get enough sleep last night."

Airi changed after the boys did, as usual. Before the pink haired girl could broach any sort of conversation, she interrupted her by saying:

"Satsuki-kun, I'm really not in the mood. I think I'll rest for a while."

Momoi reluctantly exited the locker room. Airi let out a sigh, feeling tired and guilty all the same. She wasn't always grumpy, but when she was, she could be very disagreeable. She slumped on the cold floor and drifted off.

* * *

Airi wasn't sure how long she had been out, but it seemed like it had been barely a few minutes when Aomine came in and woke her up. He kneeled in front of her, a very serious look on his face. She rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Mm. Let me sleep some more."

"There's no time to laze around. It's second quarter."

"So? We usually go in five minutes into the third quarter."

"And Kaijo is in the lead."

"Say what?" The young girl jolted to her feet. She had been so used to Touou being in the lead that this surprised her.

The two made their way over to the court. To her horror, Kaijo was in the lead with 21 to 14. How was this possible? She'd been so confident after they won the practice game.

"Ki-kun is giving it his all already," Momoi explained, fear painting her face.

At that exact moment, Kise performed a dunk so wild even Wakamatsu couldn't stop him. Harasawa requested a time out. He gathered his players and began elaborating new strategies. Su and Wakamatsu were benched so Aomine and Airi could go in. As soon as he saw them, the blond smiled brightly.

"Ah, finally. I've been waiting too long. I hope you're as thrilled as I am Hogiwaracchi."

"I sure am," Airi replied, raising her finger as if to adjust her glasses. She realized she had left them in Momoi's care and felt stupid.

The referee blew his whistle. Sakurai got the ball and was immediately blocked by Kasamatsu. The brown haired boy localized Airi and passed to her. She dribbled the ball and headed for the hoop, where the defense had already formed. She hopped and threw the ball. It bounced off the headboard and flew straight towards Aomine. The tanned male caught it and dunked just as she landed. 23 to 16. It was still a seven points difference they had to catch up to, with seven minutes left in the second quarter.

Kasamatsu passed the ball to Kise. He immediately went for the hoop opposite of him.

"Tighten up your defense!" Imayoshi shouted.

Kise dribbled the ball between his legs and side stepped Susa. He stopped in front of Airi. A visible smirk stretched his lips. Airi didn't feel comfortable. Whatever he was planning couldn't be any good.

"Know that this game won't end until I've copied your technique to perfection."

He pushed past her. She gritted her teeth and went after him. Kise stood on the line, jumped and threw the ball. Airi hopped, hand held high in the air in an attempt to block his shot, to no avail. It circled the rim and went in. Twenty four points in favor of Kaijo. She landed before the blonde did.

He raised his thumb. "That was almost perfect, wasn't it?"

"Kise, quit playing around!" Kasamatsu yelled.

Aomine jogged over to Airi. He noticed her darkened expression.

"He won't stop until he's perfectly copied my ability. Somehow, I have a feeling he will succeed. And if he does, I won't be of much use."

"Tsk. Don't say that so soon."

By the end of second quarter, Kaijo was still in the lead with 31 to 27. The usual ten minute break was given to both teams. Airi chugged down her water, wiping her mouth with the back of her palm.

"With how quick things are going, I don't think I'll last until the end of fourth quarter."

Harasawa nodded, meaning he had already acknowledged this fact. He ordered for her to stay benched for third quarter, letting Fu in. Airi kept her head down, fists clenching, trying to figure a way to get themselves out of this mess.

Kise seemed to be on the verge of copying her hop-passes to perfection. It must have been because he put much work on it during practice. Maybe he'd figured he could perform them whether he jumped or hopped. But there was still something about it.

The brown haired girl stayed in this pensive state for a good while. She could hear everything that was going on on the court. It didn't disturb her though. Ten minutes into fourth quarter, with a score of 95 to 91, she finally got it. Her head shot up.

"That's it!"

Since the coach had already requested a time out, all the players were on the bench. They gave her questioning stares. Paying no attention to them, Airi immediately turned to Aomine.

"Kise-kun, so far, can only copy my ability to hop and shoot, with the exception that he jumps. However, he cannot copy my passes, which will prove more difficult for him, considering the precision, timing and arm technique it requires."

Aomine let out a sigh of relief, the information slowly sinking in. Momoi smiled, glad her friend had taken the time to analyze something on her own. Their coach nodded.

"Told you you shouldn't have given up so soon," Aomine said.

"Wakamatsu, you're benched. Airi, you're back in."

With two minutes left in second quarter, the young girl knew they could catch up. The gap wasn't so big; it could be filled.

Nakamura was the first to get the ball. He dashed towards the hoop, trying to figure a way past the defense. Left without a choice, he raised his arms, ready to shoot. Not sooner had the ball left his hands that it was intercepted by Airi, whom had hopped in the way.

She ran towards the opposite hoop, immediately coming face to chest with Kise. Without hesitation, she propelled herself in the air. Kise followed suit, arm raised upwards. Airi then lowered the hand holding the ball and threw it to Aomine, knowing he would have anticipated this particular pass. He caught the ball, forced past the defense and dunked. 95 to 93. Another dunk brought them to a tie. 95 to 95.

For the remaining minutes, neither team scored. Ten seconds left in the game. Imayoshi gave over the ball to Airi. She dashed towards the opponent's hoop.

_Eight._

Every single one of teammates was unavailable. Airi frowned.

_Seven._

She couldn't take the risk of shooting from this far. She would miss.

_Six._

Sakurai managed to make it in front if her. She tried to pass the ball to him, only to be blocked again, by Kise.

_Five._

Airi gritted her teeth and hopped. There was no more time to think.

_Four._

She shot the ball.

_Three._

It bounced off the rim. Both Aomine and Hayakawa went for the rebound.

_Two._

The blue haired boy, determined to win, grabbed the ball and dunked.

_One. Zero._

The crowd cheered wildly. Airi smiled slightly. They had made it. They were advancing to their second game of the eight. Aomine tapped her shoulder, smirking.

"Bold choice. Nice move, though."

The two teams bowed to thank each other for the game. Though Kaijo had lost, they still had another game. If they won that one, they would advance to the quarters. As they were heading for the gym, Aomine and Airi heard yelling behind them. They turned around and were surprised to see Kise running head first towards them. When he was close, they could see the smile on his face.

"I thought you would never stop. I just wanted to say, that was one hell of a good game. I wanted to know, if you don't mind Hogiwaracchi, perhaps you could teach me at least one of your hop-passes?"

Aomine chuckled and shook his head. "You're not going to agree to this, Airi are you?"

"Why not?" she replied, looking him straight in the eyes.

The tanned male was taken aback, but he kept his cool. "Tch. Let's just go."

They left, leaving a dumbfounded Kise. He got a hold of himself and shouted after them. "I'll remind you one day! You have to teach me!"

Aomine sighed and tilted his head to the right, lips pouting slightly . "I hope you realize he's going to annoy you about it now."

"Eh. A promise is a promise."

"Well, before that promise we have other games, so get ready because it doesn't get any easier."

* * *

I don't even know how but I suddenly fell in love with Nakamura. He is just so handsome and the glasses. They give him such a dashy look. Well anyway, next game of the eight won't be so important. It's in the quarters that it'll get serious, because they'll be facing two teams I can't stop writing about. Until next time!

~AHAL


	14. Chapter 14

Hello Minna! As of last chapter, Too high won. And yes, I just discovered that's how you really write Touou. Anyway, I'll skip their second game of the eight, because obviously they'll win right? Okay so their first game of the quarters is against. . . Drum roll please. Let's just leave it like this. I love suspense. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Knb or any of its characters.

* * *

Friday November 21st

* * *

Too high was having their first game of the quarters at 4. This gave them enough time to train. During lunch, Harasawa made them do new drills. They had to line up behind each other, next to the hoops, in two groups. The first group would go for the opposite hoop, perform a layup, and wait behind the other line to perform a shot.

Airi found the layup most difficult for her. Either she took three steps instead of two, or she shot the ball too hard or too softly. She didn't give up, however, and kept trying. It did not do much, sadly.

"Try that again but stop on your left leg, and shoot with your right hand," Aomine muttered to her.

She blinked, surprised he was actually helping her, and when her turn came, she did as she was told. It didn't go in, again, but she found herself much more comfortable. So, in the next layups, the shots were beginning to be easier, and she scored a few times.

Afterwards, they played in two teams, one of which had one more player than the other, due to the fact that they were nine. Aomine and Airi ended up in the same team as Susa and Sakurai. On the other side was Imayoshi, Wakamatsu, Fu, Ku, and Su.

The rest of practice consisted of rounds of laughter since the Fukusu trio kept goofing around and ended up bickering with each other. It turned even funnier when Wakamatsu joined in for no particular reason and Sakurai tried to calm him down, which ended up in the brown haired boy bowing and spurting apology after apology.

"Who do you think we're going up against later?" Aomine asked as they headed for class.

"Well, for a fact, I know we're going against Shutoku high," Momoi answered.

Airi shivered. Shutoku high and their unbeatable shooting guard, Midorima Shintaro. Thinking about it imagining the game only served to stress her out.

"We're dead," Airi muttered, arms slumping.

"What did I tell you about giving up so soon, goddammit."

"But he's so good and—"

"No. You can't say that. You've come this far and you will go against him."

"Aomine-kun—"

"Save it." The navy blue haired player fast walked, soon chased by a wailing Airi. Momoi found herself half running half fast walking to catch up on them. Dang, when they started arguing she always felt sort of left out.

The three went straight for the bus at four P.M. The only ones missing were Fu, Ku and Su. Harasawa was beginning to get impatient. After ten minutes, he sent Wakamatsu and Susa to look for them. Another ten minutes later all five came back. Wakamatsu and Susa had pale faces and ignored the trio, who were snickering the while time.

Coach raised an eyebrow. "What were you doing?"

"Y-You don't want to know," the blond responded.

"You're right, I don't. Now let's go."

The engine was broached and the drive began. Aomine peeked over Fu's seat and poked his neck. The boy immediately turned around.

"What _were _you doing?"

Fu leaned in and whispered something in his ear. Aomine snorted and slid back in his own seat.

Airi was sitting on her own, earphones in her ears, her MP3 player in hand. Apparently, while cleaning out her bag, she'd found the electronic device. All she'd had to do was optimize it, add new songs and tada.

He quietly occupied the seat behind hers, hovered over her and gripped her shoulders without a warning.

"Boo!"

"KYAA!" Airi yelled out and briskly stood up.

The bus rolled over a speed bump just then, causing her to abruptly sit back down. Aomine smirked at her.

"What was that for?" she asked, frowning.

"I'm bored."

"Go play with Fukusu-kun then."

"No."

"Why not?"

"If I tell you I'll be held responsible for shattering your innocence."

Airi didn't insist. Instead, she sighed and pulled out her phone. She clicked on the 'messages' icon and began typing. Aomine leaned in closer, until his face was inches away from hers.

"You're texting your daddy?"

The brown haired girl sent the message and put her phone away. "Has anyone ever told you texts are personal?"

"Like I care."

The bus parked in the parking lot. Airi stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder as they all exited the vehicle. Aomine followed shortly after. The boys quickly changed and left.

"We're going up against Shutoku high today," Momoi informed.

"I know that," Airi said, voice muffled as she slipped her uniform shirt on.

"Now, from what I've gathered, Midorima-kun's three point shots have indeed gotten better. I doubt you will be able to stop them. The ball goes so high it's practically impossible to try to jump and stop it. But, I can tell you that he will be at his weakest the moment he prepares to release the ball, which is a short second."

"You don't expect me to go up against him, do you?" Airi paled.

"No. At least, not alone. Dai-chan will help you."

"More like do the whole work," said boy said as he walked in. "If you need me, I'll be lazing around."

"Wait. I'll go too," Airi said.

Momoi bit her lower lip, hesitating between going to the game or following the two. It was a tough choice. One involved being with the team to help them, the other involved ditching them for a quarter to hang out with her two friends.

Airi seemed to notice the look of conflict on her face. Feeling guilty, she glanced over at Aomine, who's back was slowly retreating. With an internal sigh, she smiled at Momoi.

"On second thought, I think it's better if we go and support the team, don't you think?"

"H-Hai."

The two stepped in the game and their eyes immediately darted to the score. 15 to 15. It was a tie. Good. Harasawa saw them and beckoned them over.

"For now it's a tie, but Shutoku high isn't making it easy."

The crowd cheered loudly, signaling a three point for Shutoku, scored by none other than Midorima himself.

"Oi, Shin-chan, look! It's the bi-gendered player!"

The words traveled to Airi's ear. She stiffened, a tick mark appearing on her forehead. She already had a name which clearly determined her gender. Why couldn't they use it?

"Takao, shut up."

"I can't wait to see her play," one of their first year recruit said.

"Same here Mitsuo."

Airi sat on the bench next to Fu and Su and watched the game, quickly forgetting about her anger. Shutoku high was good. That was the realization she made upon seeing them play from a closer look. Their defense was almost unbreakable, and their offense was strategic and well coordinated. And their two aces, point guard Takao Kazunari and shooting guard Midorima Shintaro, played so well together one would think they were shadow and light.

She shivered. Giving up might have been the easiest choice right now.

By the end of first quarter, Shutoku high were in the lead with 24 to 19. Harasawa wasn't very happy. He thought that if Aomine were here, maybe he could sub him and Airi in to close the gap. But, knowing the young girl's stamina, they would be playing fourth quarter without her.

It was a risk he had to take. He would wait until the end of second quarter. And if Aomine didn't show up by then, he'd send someone to go get him.

On the other side, Nakatani decided to bench his ace. He explained that until the other team sent in their own ace, the green haired megane wasn't playing. He didn't complain and toyed around with a miniature plush toy, his lucky item of the day.

Second quarter began shortly after. Otsubo passed the ball to Takao, who headed for the guarded hoop. He was stopped by an angry looking Wakamatsu who tried to get the ball without thinking. Takao smirked and passed to Mitsuo, their first year backup power forward. He forced past the defense and would've dunked if it weren't for Susa jumping and pushing the ball in time.

Imayoshi intercepted the round object and passed to Ku. The black haired boy side stepped Miyaji and managed to dunk. 21 to 24. All they needed now was a three pointer to tie. And that was granted minutes later, when Sakurai finally got the ball and performed a quick release shot. Shutoku high though, didn't stop there and intensified their play.

And so, second quarter ended with 42 to 38.

"We need Aomine. Airi go get him. Now."

The brown haired girl staggered to her feet due to the unexpected harsh order. She ran out of the court and dashed down a particular hallway. She knew just where to find him. Aomine was outside, sitting by the stairs, leaning back. Airi stopped to catch her breath then shook his shoulder. He lazily opened his eyes.

"C-Coach says we n-need you."

"I expected him to say that."

Aomine stood up and walked while Airi resumed running. She glanced over her back and flailed.

"Hurry!"

"There's no rush."

Five minutes later, after a lot of going back and pushing him, Airi and Aomine had made it in time. Harasawa benched Susa and Ku. Airi took the time to drink some water. She gave Momoi her glasses and joined Aomine on the court. Midorima, who'd been switched with Mitsuo, pushed his glasses up his nose. Takao grinned.

"Shin-chan! Shin-chan, look! The bi-gendered player is in!"

"Takao, she's a girl."

Airi glared at the black haired boy, which only added to his amusement.

The referee blew his whistle. Otsubo passed the ball to Kimura. He ran up to the opponents' hoop and stayed a good distance away from Wakamatsu. The blond stole the ball without a warning and ran to the other hoop, pushing past the defense and dunking.

The referee signaled a fault. The ball was given to Takao. He stood off the court and used his hawk eye to localize who he could pass to. The ball was thrown to Midorima, who dribbled and prepared.

Airi gulped. Oh God. He was going to shoot. Aomine immediately dashed in front of the green haired boy and jumped as high as he could. The ball flew higher than imaginable and went through the net flawlessly. 45 to 38.

"You're supposed to help, baka," Aomine said.

"I don't think I can keep him from shooting."

"Have you even tried?"

Airi stayed silent. She had underestimated herself too fast. Though she was a hundred percent sure even if she was given the opportunity to, she wouldn't be able to stop the green haired boy. Well, it was worth a try.

Midorima was once again, given the ball. He began elevating his arms. Airi let out a shaky breath and hopped when she thought he had released the ball. Unfortunately, she was a second too late. Another flawless shot ensued. 48 to 38. The gap kept on getting bigger and bigger. This wasn't good.

Third quarter ended up with 65 to 51. In normal games, the score would be way higher, but Shutoku high was taking things to a whole new level.

"Hogiwara, what was that? You barely even attempted to stop the ball," Harasawa half shouted.

Airi lowered her head and tightened her grip on her water bottle. She was fine with anything, anything but being scolded in front of the entire team. Okay, she'd barely tried. But even she had, how would she have been able block such a shot?

When fourth quarter began, she had no residue of hope left in her. Her passes lacked so much energy, Aomine had to struggle to get them. Her shots were so lame even Midorima had to stifle a chuckle. Where had her strength gone?

"What are you doing?" Aomine yelled at her, clearly angry.

"I don't know."

"Tch. I changed my mind too quickly. In the end, you still are a pathetic weakling."

Weakling. The word resonated throughout her head and brought back bad memories. Memories she wished had been forever forgotten. Her fists tightened and her eyes darkened. Airi ran in front of Midorima, and stood in front of Aomine, who had the firm intention of blocking the three point.

"I."

Midorima raised his arms, paying no attention to the two in front of him.

"Am not."

He shot.

"A weakling!"

Airi hopped higher than she ever had. The ball violently hit her palm and fell to the ground. Snapping out of her unexpected trance, she began rubbing her hand against her shirt, whining.

"I-Ittai."

Midorima was shocked. The main reason why he had improved his ability was so no one else would be able to block it. And yet, this girl, this seemingly _weak _girl, had outdone herself and done what Kagami had done last year.

Takao's smile disappeared. It was time to pull it together.

Airi thought about what had just happened. When Aomine angered her, it had provoked a certain reaction. She doubted she could do it again, due to the pain previously endured, but Aomine, on the other hand. . .

As soon as he made a fade away, Aomine regained his position. Airi made a small prayer.

"Hey, Aomine-kun?"

"What?"

"You suck at what you do."

"Mind repeating that again?"

"I said. You are horrible at basketball. My skills are _way_ better than yours. Your dunks are pathetic, and you can't even do a perfect layup, can you?"

A dark aura surrounded the navy blue haired boy. He let out a breath and stood up straight. This was it. She had crossed the limit. Airi shuddered, stepping a good distance away.

Aomine jumped as Midorima released the ball, keeping the shot from going in. He pushed past the defense and performed a formless shot.

Takao's eyes widened. A second block? Midorima gritted his teeth out of annoyance and adjusted his glasses.

"Kuso," he cursed.

Airi was about to congratulate her partner. When she saw his determined, emotionless face, however, she decided against it. Her 'plan' had worked a bit too well. At least, they would be able to diminish the gap. And they sure did.

Two minutes before the end of fourth quarter, the score was a surprising 82 to 82. With barely fifty seconds in the game, both team kept each other from scoring any other points. And they kept it up that way until the very end.

It was a tie. Since this was the first game of the quarters, and not the second, both team were qualified. The crowd cheered wildly as they bowed, thanking each other for the exceptional game. Harasawa nodded and took the lead in the way to the locker room.

Airi stayed behind, aching to go congratulate Midorima and Takao by herself. Without much thought, she ran towards them, ignoring Aomine's shout, and stopped in front of them, bowing hurriedly. "You two were amazing."

The rest of Shutoku high stared in curiosity. Midorima pushed his glasses up his nose and brushed past her. Airi stood up, vexed. He could have at least said something.

"Ah, don't worry about him. He's a real tsundere. Anyway, you weren't so bad yourself. Hope we meet again sometime." Takao followed the rest of his team, slightly waving at her.

The young girl sighed and returned to Aomine's side.

"Do you really feel the need to interact with every single player?"

"It's more of a reflex."

"Of course it is."

* * *

This one took so many pages! Oh my God. Sorry for updating so late. Anyway I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time!

~AHAL


	15. Chapter 15

Hello! So first of all, I wanted to thank you all so much for the positve reviews, favorites and follows. I couldn't believe it at first when all of a sudden my inbox was filled with messages of people favoring and following this story. So again, thanks.

On to the story. I had some difficulties writing this chapter of their second game of the quarters. I'm not going to lie to you, I love Hanamiya but his way of playing basketball makes me rage.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

The bus ride was particularly silent this afternoon. The team knew exactly who they were going against, and found no courage whatsoever to discuss anything. Airi had even ditched her cereal bars, not feeling hungry at all. Momoi was scribbling on her pad, trying to find many strategies. Though she felt completely dried out, she tried her best.

Not being able to hold it in anymore, Airi was the first one to burst out. The tension in the air was practically gnawing at her. "I thought you guys were more brave than this."

Aomine blinked at her, taking a second to register what she had said. He gripped on the seat a little too tightly, standing up and leaning over her. "I'd like to see you say that with a straight face."

Airi looked up at him, oblivious to the many pair of eyes staring at them. Her hazel eyes plunged into Aomime's navy blue ones. They challenged each other without saying a word.

"I thought I already did."

"Airi, don't start," he groaned, sitting back down.

"I didn't start anything. You misinterpreted my words."

Aomine let out a shaky breath. Couldn't she see how tense everyone was? Now was not the time to seek out a fight. Besides, if she wanted to get hurt, she could let Hanamiya's team do that. The young man flinched at his own thoughts. No, that was too cruel. But she did kind of deserve it.

The bus parked in the parking lot. Harasawa turned off the engine and turned towards his team. They were all extremely tense. He wanted to say something, anything. But the words were stuck in his throat. He could only manage a small, "Let's go."

Fortunately, their game was second, which gave them more time to think. Airi didn't want to just sit around. She left and wandered off in the hallways.

These Kirisaki Daiichi guys must be pretty darn messed up if they'd gotten her team so silent. And this Hanamiya. Who could he be?

She sighed. This was the kind of thing she'd been afraid to face after joining the basketball team.

As she took a turn she came up to a vending machine and heard voices behind her. Not paying any mind to them, she took out a coin, inserted it into the hole and pushed the button to get herself some Calpis Calpico. As soon as the can came out, she popped it open and took a large gulp, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Oi, isn't that the bi-gendered player?"

Airi's eye twitched. _Don't turn around._

"Aw, looks like he, or she, or _it_, isn't in a good mood."

The two boys laughed. Airi spun around, about ready to punch them in the face and froze. They didn't look one bit friendly, and the mere aura emanating off them said enough.

"Oh, would you look at that? It's a she," the one with grayish hair said.

"No, really Kazuya?" the one with strange eyebrows answered.

Airi looked around for an exit, but there was none. The two were blocking her way and didn't seem ready to go anytime soon. She cursed her bad luck.

"Oh, where are our manners? I am Hanamiya, Hanamiya Makoto. This bubblegum obsessed idiot here is Kayuza Hara."

Her eyes widened considerably. They were from Kirisaki Daiichi. Now feeling more afraid than ever, she tried to go past them only to be held back by Hanamiya.

"Aw, the party just started. You wouldn't want to leave your guests hanging, would you?"

Airi tried to push his arm away. Hanamiya's fist tightened and punched at her stomach. She stumbled backwards, coughing while putting her can down. Kazuya smiled evilly and took a few steps towards her.

"I wonder if she'll be able to play without her legs."

"Go ahead and find out for yourself."

The silver haired boy chuckled mischievously and kicked Airi's legs from underneath her. She let out a yelp as she fell on her bottom, wincing at the acute pain. She gritted her teeth, covering her legs. Shit. This wasn't good.

Kayuza merely 'tch'ed and popped a bubble. "So weak."

Airi tried to stand up. Hanamiya joined in and kneed her in the stomach, practically knocking the breath out of her. She fell back on her knees, one arm around her stomach as she tried to get air circulating through her lungs again. The two boys snickered sadistically.

"What is going on here?"

Airi couldn't see who it was, since her vision had gotten blurry, but the voice was vaguely familiar.

Kazuya was the first to spin around, meeting face to face with Shutoku High's ace and his friend. "Mind your own business, carrot."

Midorima's eyebrow twitched upon being called such a disgraceful name, but he said nothing. Takao was frowning, his fists clenching and unclenching several times.

"These guys aren't worth it. Let's go Kazuya."

And so they left. Takao wanted to chase after them and beat the hell out of them. He kept himself in check, though, and sat in front of Airi, who had tears streaming down her face.

"That's sure to have left a bruise. We should take her to the infirmary."

"Do what you want, I don't care. I just want a can of red bean—"

"For the love of God Shin-chan, she's been beaten up. Cooperate with me here, will ya? If you still have Aomine's number, call him."

Midorima blinked. Takao was right. How could he act so careless? So maybe he wasn't sure he could befriend, or ever have some sort of friendship with the girl, but as of right now, she was hurt, hyperventilating for dear life, and needed help. He took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts while Takao helped Airi up and headed for the infirmary.

"Aomine? You might want to head to the infirmary. Your friend just had a pretty painful encounter with Hanamiya."

* * *

Momoi burst through the door, her eyes landing on Airi's laying figure. She rushed to her side, almost hurling the nurse to the other side of the room. Aomine followed, not even bothering to glance at the surprised woman.

"Airi-chan, are you okay?" Momoi inquired.

"I've never been any better," came the sarcastic answer.

"Airi, this is no time to joke," Aomine warned.

The meaning behind his sentence was 'tell me what happened, now'. She looked to the side, her hand resting on her clothed stomach.

"I was getting a drink at the vending machine when Hanamiya and Kazuyan - I believe that's their names - showed up. They gave me a short but rough beating. And I can tell you, if it weren't for Midorima-kun and Takao-kun, they would've done much worse."

On impulse, Momoi lifted her friend's shirt and gasped. A huge purple bruises was covering a good half, if not more, of her stomach. Airi immediately pulled her shirt down, flushing.

The navy blue haired boy's eyebrows scrunched. "I swear I'll make them pay."

"That's not necessary, Aomine-kun."

"Of course it's necessary, dumb ass!"

Airi flinched at his words. She'd never seen him this angry. It scared her, more than the two Kirisaki Daiichi boys she'd faced earlier. Momoi tried to calm him down to no avail.

"Airi, you can't always forgive people like that. These bastards have gone too far. They _have_ to pay."

She nodded, mostly because she was afraid to open her mouth and say the wrong thing.

"Meanwhile, you probably won't be able to play today," the pink haired girl remarked.

"Oh no, don't worry. This won't keep me from playing. I've seen worse days." She sat up, ignoring the immense effort it took her to do so.

There was a heavy silence in the room, only troubled by the regular 'tic-toc' of the clock.

"I don't care what the consequences will be, I want you in by third quarter. Come Satsuki, the game begins soon."

* * *

Harasawa was surprised to see Aomine in from the first quarter. And he had good guess as to why.

* * *

Airi waited in the room. She'd applied a healing balm the nurse had given her to her hurting stomach, so the healing process would go quicker. It felt as if her skin was on fire, but it worked. Half an hour later, assuming it was third quarter, she stood up, left to the locker room, changed and headed for the court.

The sound of the crowd cheering was the first thing she heard.

Her eyes darted to the score. 63 to 62 in favor of Kirisaki. She then glanced at her teammates only to see most of them covered in light bruises for some, and severe bruises for others. Even Sakurai hadn't been spared. They hadn't given up though, which was great,

Airi drew in a deep breath and waited for an occasional time out, which was granted soon. Sakurai, who looked the most hurt out of all of them, was benched. Feeling shaky, Airi joined her team on the court and did her best to ignore Hanamiaya and Kazuya's amused stares.

The referee blew his whistle. Third quarter was engaged.

Hanamiya passed the ball to Kazuya. The silver haired boy dribbled the ball, taking a few steps forward. Their Center, Kentaro, pretended to be guarding Wakamatsu when, in reality, he was actually keeping the referee from seeing what was going to happen.

Kazuya smirked and charged, going past Aomine. The Power Forward did a double take and chased after him. Kazuya passed to Kojiro, who was blocking Airi. The brown haired boy made sure to lightly elbow her in the stomach before heading for the hoop.

Airi doubled over, one hand over her stomach. Momoi stood up, worry written all over her face. It had began. She doubted Airi could last very long if she kept being hit in the stomach. Harasawa seemed to be thinking the same thing, for he requested an immediate timeout.

Airi was switched with Fu. The game was back in session.

Airi felt bad for not being able to help. But what could she do? Her stomach was in a bad shape, and playing like this meant risking to stay benched for the rest of the Winter Cup.

Kirisaki Daiichi was in the lead, still, with 75 to 69. The referee was still oblivious to the many fouls Kirisaki was committing. When third quarter ended, Airi had had enough.

"I demand a switch."

The team blinked in surprise at her. Harasawa shook his head.

"Not in your current state. You can't play like th—"

"Let me in," she repeated more forcefully.

"Just let her in. Whatever happens next is on her," Imayoshi added, shocking their coach.

"Alright. Fu, back on the bench."

When fourth quarter began, she knew what she was going to do. As soon as Kentaro made his move, she made hers. Airi stood in front of him and, taking advantage of the fact that he was taller than her, she pushed at him as hard as she could. He took a step back and that was about it. It was enough for the referee to see what Hanamiya and his teammates were doing. He signaled a fault.

As Imayoshi got ready to pass the ball, Aomine, Momoi and Harasawa figured at the same time what she was planning to do.

Wakamatsu also understood and got in the task of pushing Kentaro out of the way. With their plan in effect, their hopes of winning returned. Hanamiya was pretty pissed. Now there was no other solution but to play fair.

Touou high won with 86 to 84, thanks to Aomine's last minute fade away. The crowd went wild. Airi smiled, relief washing over her.

The two teams bowed, thanking each other for the game. As Too was making their exit, Hanamiya attempted to deliver an especially hard blow to Airi's stomach. It was stopped, however, by Aomine.

He glared at Hanamiya and warned him in an incredibly calm voice, "Be grateful I let you off the hook so easily you freak. Try hurting her one more time and I'll personally make sure you never set foot on a basketball court again."

The black haired boy glowered at them and stormed off, followed by his team.

Airi stared at the ground. "You didn't have to do that."

"Would you rather stay benched for the rest of the season? Because if that's the case, I can call him back."

"N-No!"

"Good. Now let's go moron," Aomine said, grinning slightly at her protests.

* * *

Hey guys. Sorry for this super late update. But now that I am on spring break I will be able to update more often. So yeah, only three more games. Yosen, Seirin and Rakuzan. Can't wait. Thanks for putting up with me. Until next time!


	16. Chapter 16

Well. Yosen high already. Only two more games to go. Again, thank you so very much for supporting this story guys. It means a lot.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or any of its characters.

* * *

"Here."

Momoi dropped an article on Airi's table. Eager, the young girl opened it and let her eyes skim over the pages. Nothing was left unscanned, not a dot, not a word, not a coma. Momoi sat next to her.

"Yosen high, as you asked for."

"Thank you, Satsuki-kun."

"How's your bruise?"

"It's healing fine."

There was silence for a while as Airi focused on the article. It had information on every single player, as well as some backstory and skills. She learned that one of the team members, Himuro, used to be 'brothers' with Seirin high's Kagami Taiga. She also learned about their ace, Murasakibara Atsushi. Just looking at his picture made her shudder. Not only was he tall, but there was also something dangerous about him.

Aomine glanced over her shoulder the minute he came in and took the article away.

Airi gasped and turned around. "Hey, I was reading that!"

"You read too much." He shove the article in his bag. If Airi kept reading these damned papers it would only discourage her. And, having known her long enough, he knew just how easily discouraged she was. It was better confronting the enemy on the court rather than learning about them in advance.

Airi pouted and gave Momoi a look that said 'help me'. The pinkette shook her head and sat upright.

"Dai-chan is right."

Exasperated, Airi wrapped her head in her arms. Aomine chuckled and sat in front of them.

"So got any cereal bars? I'm starving."

Airi draped an arm over her bag protectively, frantically shaking her head. Aomine didn't buy it and reached for the object. The young girl pushed her chair backwards, frowning. He did the same and stood up, taking long strides towards her.

"Airi, cereal bar. Now."

"No."

From there on, everything went downhill. Airi jumped to her feet and tried to make a run for it. Aomine grabbed the back of her shirt, effectively stopping her. Determined however, the brown haired girl turned around and hit his arm repeatedly, which didn't affect him much.

"Airi, if you know what's good for you, hand them over."

"Never! I rather die than—"

Airi was cut off as Aomine tickled her sides. She let out fits of laughter, wiggling around to get away from his grip.

"So, are you ready to rethink your choice?"

"F-Fine!"

He let her go, smirking. "Good girl."

Airi muttered something under her breath, standing up and taking her bag. She took out a cereal bar and threw it at Aomine while eating another one she had began chewing on. "By the way, if you wanted one, you could have asked nicely."

"Tch."

The three exited the empty classroom. The other students were outside, since it had been quite warm for an early winter day. Aomine finished the cereal bar in an instant and slipped the empty wrapper in Momoi's bag. The pink haired girl noticed and shove the wrapper in his hand.

"I'm not going to walk around with your trash."

Aomine shrugged and instead, slipped it into Airi's bag. The oblivious young girl was listening to music and so, didn't notice. Momoi tried to tell her but her friend slapped a hand over her mouth. She was forced to keep quiet throughout the bus ride. Aomine sat right behind Airi to ensure Momoi wouldn't bust him. And it worked.

When they reached the stadium, Airi stopped by the nearest trash can and, to their surprise, took out a mountain of wrappers and threw them away. Aomine snorted. So he wasn't the only one who was too lazy to go throw stuff away.

Yet again, today, their game was second, leaving them with free time on their hands. Airi wanted to walk around alone. Momoi, Aomine, and Harasawa protested. In the end, she asked Sakurai to accompany her, feeling a migraine coming up. The two walked through the hallways, engaging small talk.

"So how's it going?" Sakurai asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Between you and Aomine-kun."

"Ah. Well so far so good. Ever since the Kirisaki Daiichi incident though, he won't let me wander off by myself, which bothers me at times."

"I would do the same thing, you know? These guys attacked you without a valid reason."

Airi noticed Sakurai's fists slowly clenching and his voice rose slightly at the last three words. She understood just how pissed he had been when he learned the news as well. With a sigh, she playfully punched his shoulder, deciding it'd be best to change subjects.

"And how are you dealing with your fangirls?" she asked, pushing her glasses up her nose.

Sakurai blushed instantly, glancing over at his friend. "Y-You mean those c-creepy girls that k-keep sending me l-letters?"

Airi laughed out loud at his reaction, stopping for a second. She leaned on the wall, wiping the tears that had accumulated at the corners of her eyes.

"Oh my God, you should have seen your face."

"I-It's not funny Airi-kun. I-It's really scary."

"Well, I don't blame them. Girls _love_ a sweet, affectionate guy. And those guys usually hide beneath shy, blushing faces."

Sakurai used the collar of his shirt to cover the lower part of his face. It did nothing to hide the red color that had spread out over his face. Airi patted his shoulder in a friendly manner as they kept walking.

"I was kidding."

As they rounded a corner, the two bumped into someone. A very tall someone that is. They stumbled backwards. Sakurai, the first one to recover, began bowing and spluttering apologies. Airi took the time to identify the person and felt the hairs on the back of her head stand on ends.

"M-Murasakibara Atsushi," she whispered.

It was loud enough for the brown haired boy to hear. He slowly stood up and paled considerably.

The giant, who happened to be munching on snacks, looking down at them in a bored manner. "Neh, aren't you the bi-gendered player?"

That snapped Airi out of her daze. She had gotten so used to being called by this stupid nickname she knew it was no use getting upset over it. She nodded hesitantly.

"Muro-chin, I found the bi-gendered player," he shouted, turning around.

"W-We're sorry for bumping into you. L-Let's go Ryo-kun."

She grabbed Sakurai's arm and dragged him away, not wanting to meet up with more players. When they were far away, she let out a shaky breath she didn't know she'd been holding in. Their reactions had been stupid. He might have been intimidating, but who said he meant any harm?

"We shouldn't have let our emotions get the best of us."

"H-Hai."

They headed back to the locker room. Once the team left, Airi quickly changed and joined them. She wanted to see for herself how Yosen high played, especially the tall giant she bumped into earlier.

She sat on the bench and finished tying her shoes just as the game began.

The first three points were scored by Sakurai. The brown haired boy was quite proud of himself for opening the game. Okamura got the ball and ran towards Too's hoop, dunking fiercely. 2 to 3. And so the game went on.

At some point, Airi acknowledged one of their players, Himuro, for his Mirage shot. Even after seeing it many times after, she still couldn't understand the logic behind it; it frustrated her. Furthermore, that Murasakibara guy wasn't doing anything other than standing under the net.

She let out a silent growl, rubbing her temples. She had been raised in a family where everything had to be understood in a flash. Being on the court and not being able to understand a thing about the Mirage shot or Murasakibara's behavior upset her deeply.

Around second quarter, Aomine showed up, his face so serious it sent chills down Airi's back. He plopped down next to her on the bench, looking at the score. 23 to 21 in favor of Too.

"Do you think you can handle it?"

It took Airi a few seconds to realize he spoke, and another few seconds to realize he asked her a question.

"H-Huh? Handle what?"

"I want to be in during second quarter. So I'm asking you, can you handle it?"

"I think so. Why—?"

He stood up and told their coach. Harasawa rose an eyebrow.

"And why's that?"

"I simply have a bad feeling. Atsushi looks a lot more powerful than last year, believe it or not."

After some arguing, Harasawa agreed. Airi hadn't realized that she didn't exactly want to play, up until the moment she stepped on the court. It dawned upon her too quickly for her liking. When the referee blew his whistle, she realized with horror that fear was bubbling up within her. It was too late to back up now.

Kensuki passed the ball to Okamura. The Power Forward, dodging Wakamatsu, headed straight for the hoop. Aomine stole the ball from him with ease and performed a fade away. 25 to 21.

Airi blinked at how easily he'd had performed it. Murasakibara, who was standing right beneath the net, hadn't done anything to stop him. It confused her to no end.

Imayoshi passed the ball to her. Airi ran for the hoop. She was blocked by Liu. Drawing in a deep breath, she hopped and threw the ball. It bounced off the headboard and landed in Aomine's hands. He dunked, scoring another two points. As they regained their position, he gripped Airi's shoulder.

"This isn't good."

"What do you mean? The fact that we're winning easily?"

"No. Just. Try not to show them all your hop-pass techniques. I have a feeling they're studying them to be able to counter attack later on."

She blinked. For once, Aomine seemed extremely tense.

When second quarter ended, the score was 32 to 28. And Airi, having somehow easily forgotten Aomine's words, had let out her entire hop-pass techniques. She stayed benched throughout the entirety of third quarter, and watched in amplified confusion as Too scored more points.

When she was subbed back in for fourth quarter, it was a 57 to 46. Airi knew fourth quarter wouldn't be as easy now. The Yosen team was practically oozing with a menacing aura. Murasakibara had tied his hair, and his face had taken a more serious expression. It gave her goosebumps.

The referee signaled the beginning of fourth quarter. Imayoshi passed the ball to Wakamatsu. The blond tried to force past the defense, only to have the ball stolen by Liu. He passed the ball to Himuro who performed a Mirage Shot. 49 to 57. This wasn't good. It seemed Yosen was intending on catching first up, then beating them.

Airi managed to steal the ball from an unsuspecting Fukui. She ran for the hoop, only to be met by Murasakibara. The young girl's neck began to hurt as she craned it to look at him. Letting out a shaky breath, she hopped, ready to do a sideways pass. Just as she lowered her hand, Murasakibara's shot up and easily grabbed the ball.

Airi fell to the ground, eyes wide. She scrambled to her feet fast enough to see him dunk. Neither Aomine nor Wakamatsu were able to stop him.

Sakurai rushed to her, panting. "Airi-chan, are you okay?"

"H-He... He blocked it."

Sakurai gave her an apologetic look as he regained his position. Airi did the same, still shocked. This was what Aomine had warned her about, and she had foolishly gone against his warning.

Fourth quarter went on like this and soon, Yosen had caught up with an incredible 70 to 60. A ten point difference was too much, especially with seven minutes left in the game. Harasawa requested a time out.

"Okay Airi, I need to bench you. You won't be of much use now that Murasakibara is able to block all your passes. You'll be switched with Fu."

She nodded without a word, sighing. She watched the game half absent-mindedly, racking her brain to find something. Momoi seemed to be doing the same. Both girls' heads shot up at the same time at some point. Harasawa had requested another time out. Glancing at each other, they nodded.

"I think I figured out the trick behind Himuro's Mirage shot," Momoi said.

"And I think I know how to stop Murasakibara-kun," Airi added.

"Momoi, go ahead."

"Alright. The secret behind the Mirage shot is that it's actually two shots made almost simultaneously. To block him, you've got to attentively watch and immediately jump before the second release."

"Interesting. Airi?"

"If you sub me back in, I could make Murasakibara-kun commit three fouls* and have him benched for the rest of the game."

"We only have five minutes left, and they're leading with 78 to 63. How are you going to do that?" Ku asked.

"Leave the rest to me."

Harasawa nodded and benched Fu. Airi rubbed her hands together discreetly, glad she wasn't wearing her glasses. She could do this; for the team, and in order to play against Seirin.

The game began. Airi got in the task of blocking Murasakibara, which surprised the purple haired boy's teammates. He was much taller and heavier than her. What did she think she was doing?

She pushed at him with all her strength, trying hard to make him move. Annoyed, Murasakibara pushed her away. Airi stumbled and fell on her bottom. The referee signaled a foul. The brown haired girl nodded. Two more to go.

Wakamatsu rushed for the hoop, and stopped, dribbling the ball. All his teammates were out of reach Gritting his teeth, he took the risk of forcing past them and successfully dunked. 65 to 78. Thirteen more points to go. Once more, Airi blocked Murasakibara. Seeing his foot stretched to one side, she pretended he tripped her. The pain of falling over was nothing compared to the satisfaction of seeing Murasakibara being assigned a second foul. One more to go.

Too caught up. Imayoshi, being a good Point Guard, was able to block Himuro's Mirage shot effectively. The score was a tie by the time there was only two minutes left. 78 to 78.

Murasakibara was gradually getting pissed at Airi. "I know what you're trying to do. If you don't stay away from me, I'll crush you," he muttered, loud enough for her to hear.

She gulped. She had to keep going. The team was counting on her.

Sakurai shot a three point, changing the score to 81 to 78. All they had to do now was make sure Yosen didn't score.

Airi was passed the ball, seeing she was the only one available. Turning around, she was shocked at how quickly the defense had formed. Fighting back the fear, she hopped, and shot. The ball bounced off the rim. Murasakibara got it and ran towards the opposite hoop. Airi dashed after him. Too had already formed their defense. Murasakibara raised his arms, ready to shoot.

Aomine jumped then, slapping the ball out of his hands. Without wasting a second, he ran towards Yosen's net and dunked, all that done extremely fast. 83 to 78. Forty nine seconds left.

Airi shivered when she saw her partner. It were as if sparks were flying out of his eyes. She gave Imayoshi a meaningful look.

"Aomine is currently in what is called the Zone. A state of mind where he focuses on nothing else but the game. This increases his abilities and skills in an almost impossible way."

"Oh."

The rest of the game was led by Aomine. When it ended, Too won with 91 to 82. Airi hadn't been able to get Murasakibara to be benched but, strangely, the look on his face was enough to make her happy. She didn't take her eyes off him, until Aomine dragged her after him. By then, Murasakibara was staring back at her, anger painted over his face.

"If you stay here any longer, he will crush you for sure. We still need you for our next games. Besides, hasn't anyone told you staring is rude?"

"Don't even get me started."

* * *

*In a normal basketball game (yes, I watch the NBA) a player is benched after 6 fouls. I shortened it to three here.

Okay. I am so sorry for this late update. But I'll try not to disappoint you. I also thank you guys for more favorites and follows. Man this story is really taking off. So I am planning in maybe 3 more chapters. More or less. And if I don't update soon, don't worry. I haven't forgotten about you guys. It just takes some time to write these chapters. Until next time!

~AHAL


	17. Chapter 17

Hello everyone! This one isn't a game, sadly. Just a little break because trust me, it's not that easy trying to write a basketball game. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no basket or any of its characters.

* * *

"Excuse me, what?"

Momoi smiled kindly and patiently repeated what she said. "We're going on vacations."

"No, Momoi-san, we don't have time for vacations. The team needs you and I want to play against Seirin high, like, I really want to meet Kuroko and Kagami and—"

"Hush now." The pink haired girl placed a finger over her friend's lips, stopping the flow of words that were coming out of her mouth. She shook her head and grabbed Airi's shoulders. "Calm down Airi-chan. The whole team is going. It's something we do yearly. We have an entire week before our game against Seirin, and until then, you need to relax."

"Alright. When are we leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning. It's a Tuesday. We'll be back Friday."

"Okay." Airi gathered her sweaty training clothes, stuffed them in a separate bag and opened the door, holding it for Momoi.

The two walked down the hallway, talking about everything and nothing. At some point, Momoi managed to bring Seirin high in the conversation.

"So what's your obsession with them?" she asked.

"Well, it's not exactly an obsession. You see, from the moment I learned about Kuroko and Kagami. . . It was almost. . . Magical. I wanted to play against them, meet them you know what I mean? They became my idols."

"I see what you mean. Be patient, we'll be playing against them soon."

That night, as they ate dinner, Airi told her mother and sister about the oncoming events.

"That's great sweetheart. I wish you the best of luck. And you say you're leaving tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"You better start packing up then. Kira, go help her."

Kira groaned but got up anyway. She knew better than to contest her mother's orders. The two walked up to Airi's room. Said girl got a small luggage and began picking clothes out randomly.

"So, will you and your boyfriend be in a room together?"

"Kira, please, not now."

"Unless it's that other guy. Oh trust me, he is way hotter."

"Kira!"

"Sorry, sorry." Kira kneeled next to her sister and, to Airi's surprise, hugged her tightly. No words were exchanged for a good two minutes until the older girl pulled back. "It's just that. . . I am worried for you. Boys are so inappropriate and these kinds of trips are the perfect occasion for them to—"

Airi interrupted her by putting a hand over her head and ruffling her hair, smiling ever so slightly. "I understand Kira. Don't worry. Now help me pack up, will ya?"

"Alright. You owe me stiff stick."

* * *

The next morning was more of a rush for Airi. Get up. Shower quickly. Eat a cereal bar. Say goodbye. Get to school.

The first place she headed to was the gym, dragging her luggage behind her, eyes fixed on her phone as she kept receiving messages from her father. Last night, before going to bed, she had informed him of the little trip. And when she'd woken up that morning, she'd found her inbox full of messages.

Airi, not paying attention to her surroundings, bumped into a muscular figure.

"Oi! Watch where you're going!"

She mentally cursed herself for bumping into Wakamatsu of all people. "S-Sorry Wakamatsu-senpai. Didn't see you there."

"You would've seen me if you had looked up from that goddamned phone."

She bowed apologetically and walked past him, not giving him any time to say something else. "What a loud mouth. He made a big deal out of nothing."

She reached the gym and waved at Momoi and Aomine. The pinkette smiled brightly and practically glomped her. The tan skinned boy merely snorted, hands stuffed in his pockets.

"You made it!" Momoi exclaimed.

"O-Of course."

The gym slowly filled up, starting with Wakamatsu, then the trio, Sakurai, Imayoshi, Susa and finally their coach. Harasawa took attendance before the small group headed to the bus.

"This is going to be so cool," Aomine said, stretching and purposely leaning all his weight against Airi. The young girl shifted in her seat, nudging him. He didn't budge.

"Umm... Aomine-kun? Do you mind?"

"Yes, I do mind."

With a sigh, she stood up to take another seat. At least, she tried to. The navy blue haired boy grabbed her wrist and forced her to seat back down, this time his head lying in her lap. Airi sent Momoi a look.

"Dai-chan? You're making Airi-chan uncomfortable."

"Do I look like I care?"

Airi sighed and ignored him, even though he was staring at her. At some point, Fu leaned over his seat to talk to them. She was thankful for the distraction.

"I heard there were hot springs there," he chimed.

"It's a very traditional place," Momoi answered from the seat on his right.

"Coooooool. I hope the guys' hot springs are connected to the girls'."

"Believe me. They are," said Aomine.

The fact that Aomine was the one to say that worried Airi. Being probably the most perverted of them all, he was surely going to try to pull a dirty trick. But their senpais wouldn't allow it, right? Unless they were perverted too.

The bus made a sharp turn. Aomine fell off the seat and landed loudly. The entire team began laughing, including Airi, who put her legs on the other end of her seat to keep him from annoying her further more.

He stood up grumpily, glaring at the trio before taking a seat of his own. He slumped down lazily and leaned his head against the window. Airi finally relaxed and shut her eyes to get some well needed sleep.

* * *

When the bus finally reached its destination, it was about 1:30 in the afternoon. Three to four hours of travel to get there. Momoi gently shook Airi's shoulders.

"Hey, wake up. We've arrived."

"Already?" The brown haired girl stretched and stood up, taking her luggage before following her friend out of the bus.

"This is going to be awesome!" Wakamatsu shouted somewhere from the front.

"Yeah. Sure. I hope it will be," Airi mumbled.

* * *

Okay, I am EXTREMELY SORRY for this extremely late update. But school kept me busy. Anyway, I will try to update more often. Please forgive me. *bows a thousand times* Thank you for your patience.


	18. Chapter 18

And here is chapter 18. I am very sorry it took some time, and might be crappy. Just enjoy it as much as you can alright?

* * *

Momoi was right when she said the place was traditional. It was extremely traditional, from the walls to to the bamboos used for the decorations.

"Here we are," Momoi said, opening the door to the room Airi and her were going to share for the next three days.

Airi's eyes widened. The room was amazing. There was a tatami floor, futons, a luxurious bathroom and even a door leading to a small balcony, covered by silky curtains.

"Speechless much?" the pink haired girl teased while unpacking.

Airi joined her and nodded. "This is all so. . . Beautiful."

"Alright. So if you want, we can go visit the place or stay here, grab some lunch, and go to the onsen at night."

"Sounds delightful to me."

They opted for staying in their room to relax for a while. Airi drifted off once again, without even noticing. Momoi decided to let her sleep and get them food by herself. Airi seemed like she deserved some sleep.

She slowly opened and closed the door before skipping down the hallway. She politely greeted a few kind elderly people and, by the time she reached the reception, she was worn out.

"Excuse me, I'd like to order lunch."

The young man at the reception looked up. His eyes drifted down almost immediately to the young lady's chest.

"Hello?" Momoi snapped her fingers in front of him. He snapped out of his daze in response and did his best to keep his orbs on hers.

"W-What would you like?"

"Let's see. . . Some sushi would be nice, as well as rice with shrimp, some meat, steamed vegetables and soda."

The guy wrote everything down and asked for the room number before announcing the food would be delivered in less than fifteen minutes. Momoi thanked him and left.

Airi had awoken; she was sitting with her back to the door, staring at her phone, a small smile on her lips. The pink haired girl couldn't help it. She curiously peered over her friend's shoulder and read the message.

'Hey sweetie. Hope you have a wonderful time there. I'll be home for an entire week. Can you imagine? I finally get the opportunity to go see you play. I can't wait to have some father-daughter time with you and your sister.'

Momoi suddenly realized she was invading Airi's personal life and backed up, pretending she had just come in. "Ah, you're awake."

"Yes I am. Are you done ordering lunch?"

"Mhm. It'll be ready in a few minutes."

Airi stood up and stretched, opening the curtains covering the door to the balcony and took a glance outside. It was around 2:30. If they finished lunch in time, she would be able to go for a walk and probably spend a good part of her time practicing on the basketball court.

"I also forgot to tell you that we aren't the only basketball team here. If you're planning on going to the court, know that there will probably be—"

"Is Seirin high here?" Airi interrupted.

Momoi looked at her for a few seconds then nodded quietly.

"Good. I'd like to meet them sometime."

She sat next to the smaller girl and for a few seconds, there was a silence that was far from uncomfortable. It was one of those silences that occurred when one was thinking deeply and the other dared not interrupt.

"I don't mean to be annoying about it. I've just never felt this way when thinking of a team. It's like when you're excited about going to the playground as a kid. Or like when you learn your favorite brand of clothing is finally on sale."

Momoi couldn't help the small smile that crept up her lips. She didn't find Airi annoying when she started talking about Seirin. If anything, she was quite entranced by it. It gave the taller girl a certain entertaining childishness.

Someone knocked on their door gently. Airi stood up and opened the door. She took their lunch from the young man, bowed politely then closed the door.

"I didn't know you ordered this much food!"

"Heh. I thought you were hungry."

"I am, but what if there's left over?"

"Oh there won't be, trust me. I am starving."

They sat around the small table, on their knees, their chopsticks poised.

"Itadakimasu!"

* * *

In the evening, around 5:30 pm, Airi and Momoi exited their room. The cool air greeted them as they stepped outside. It was quieter than they thought, the silence often interrupted by the sound of the wind lightly howling.

As they neared the court, the other almost omnipresent sound was that of a basketball bouncing against the hard ground, followed by the scraping of shoes. Airi felt her blood rush. Her heartbeat increased. And yet, to her disappointment, it was merely Aomine training by himself.

He stopped when he saw them approaching, scratching the back of his neck. "Yo."

"Hey," came the reply.

Aomine then turned his head to the side and yelled, "Taiga, how long is it going to take you to get just a single ball!?"

The red hair popped up almost immediately, looking pissed. "Shut up!"

Airi felt her heart skip a beat. It couldn't be. . .

"Hello Momoi-san, Hogiwara-san."

She nearly jumped out of her skin and immediately turned around to see Momoi throw her arms around a short, blue haired boy, hugging him to certain death.

Airi let out a deep breath. "Kuroko Tetsuya is it? Nice to meet you in person."

"The feeling's mutual. Aomine-kun said a lot about you."

Airi turned to Aomine, who pretended to be staring at the sky. Kagami let out an annoyed huff.

"I want to play against both of you. Kuroko and I against Hogiwara and you."

Momoi reluctantly let go of her 'Tetsu-kun'. Airi didn't know whether to be mad or excited. In all honesty, she didn't want to play against them. She wanted to _watch _them play.

"I'm unable to play because I accidentally shut the door on my hand. Sorry."

Aomine didn't believe her. He could easily tell a liar from an honest person. Somehow, he didn't feel like pushing her either. Kagami, on the other hand, was grinning like a total fool.

"Well well, lost your confidence?"

"Lose my confidence because of you? Tch. Don't underestimate us. Tomorrow though, whether you want it or not, you're playing," the Too ace said to Kagami.

Airi knew the message was partially meant for her. She felt it. With a sigh, she lightly nodded and directed her gaze towards the ball. With a slight twitch, she asked, "Actually, could I please borrow the basketball?"

Kagami blinked and handed it over to her, curiosity surging up.

"I thought you hurt your hand," Kuroko said.

"It was just an excuse." With a slow, hesitant step, she began bouncing the ball, a shaky breath easing out of her mouth. She passed the ball to Aomine, who didn't need much to understand her goal.

Airi placed herself in front of Kagami who crouched into a defensive position. Aomine dribbled firmly and rushed towards him. Airi almost immediately slid to the side in order to get the ball.

Kagami attempted to block. Just as Aomine prepared to pass the ball, Kuroko came in and punched the ball away. Airi didn't dare pick it up. Instead, she turned to her partner and said "I give up," before walking away.

"Oh, looks like we have a sissy." Kagami smirked.

The brown haired girl stopped dead in her tracks. Without turning around, she calmly explained herself. "I am not giving up. Now that I've seen what you're capable of, I want to retreat, analyze and prepare myself. Never judge someone so quickly. That's just wrong, Kagami-kun."

Airi grabbed Momoi's hand and practically dragged her away. Aomine tilted his head to the side and snorted.

"She's playing it all cool and stuff, but she's probably freaking out on the inside." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked after the two girls, ignoring Kagami's constant shouts behind him telling him to come back. After what had happened, he didn't feel like playing anymore. All he wanted now was to see how Airi would 'prepare' herself.

* * *

Hello! Okay so there is supposed to be a hot spring scene, I'll put it in next chapter. I only have two weeks left of school guys, cheer up. I'll be able to update faster. I mean, how great is that? I really appreciate that you are still following this story. It means so, so much. Until next time!

~AHAL


	19. Chapter 19

"Airi-chan, what was that right there?" Momoi asked, taken aback.

The young girl drew in a deep breath, her fingers practically shaking. "I have no idea."

"Trying to play it cool in front of them? Didn't work much," Aomine pointed out.

Airi waved her hand at him, embarrassed. She didn't know herself whether she had tried to play it cool or not. All she knew was that being called a quitter hadn't pleased her, and she had to stand up for her pride.

"So are you really going to study their way of playing?" Momoi asked.

"Yes. But I need to relax first. Let's go to the hot springs."

Aomine rolled his eyes. What was it with girls and hot springs? "Tch. I guess I'll leave you two alone then."

"Actually, be a gentleman and escort us to our room," Airi said.

The sentence had escaped her lips while she had had no intentions for it to do so. But it was out and in the open now.

Aomine froze and his eyebrows twitched, an annoyed smirk making its way onto his mouth. "What was that?"

Airi gulped and hid behind Momoi, who was laughing in pure amusement. "N-Nothing!"

"Come here you little—"

Airi took off before he could finish. The tanned boy immediately chased after her. Momoi laughed harder and left to shower first, expecting her friend to come back all sweaty.

* * *

"I got you now!"

Airi yelped as Aomine grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and lifted her up to eye level, visibly pissed. She made a mental note to think before opening her mouth.

"Oh come on Aomine-kun, you know better than me that I spurt out things without knowing it!"

"I am pretty sure you were conscious this time."

"No, I swear!"

He cut her off by pining her against the wall, his eyes directly linked to hers. Airi gulped nervously at the proximity, her legs feeling weak all of a sudden. Aomine let out a shaky breath.

"Next time, watch what you're saying. I won't be as merciful as I am today."

She nodded. Without knowing why, Airi wanted this moment to last for eternity. The navy blue haired boy didn't seem to want to move either. If anything, he kept his orbs on the trembling young girl in front of him.

He smirked. "Don't tell me you're scared of me," he teased in a low voice.

Airi was sure her knees would have given up if it weren't for a cheerful voice interrupting them. And she was half grateful and half disappointed for it.

"Didn't I tell you Shin-chan!? Didn't I tell you they act lovey dovey when no one's watching!?"

Aomine slowly peeled himself away Airi, staring at the pair. Midorima pushed his glasses up his nose before smacking Takao across the head to keep him from bouncing on his feet once more. The latter pouted, rubbing the back of his head.

"Shintaro."

"Aomine."

The two giants glared at each other, as if telepathically arguing. Airi, having regained some strength, intervened before the tanned boy could start something.

"I never got a chance to thank you for helping me a few days back."

"Don't mention it." Takao waved his hand. "It was the natural thing to do."

Aomine snorted and crossed his hands behind his head. Midorima slightly nodded his head in acknowledgment, toying with a set of keys that happened to be his lucky item.

"Let's go, Takao. I'm hungry."

"But Shin-chan, we just ate."

Midorima ignored his complaint and walked away. Takao waved at the two and chased after the green haired megane. Airi watched their retreating backs.

"So, where were we?"

"No!" she shouted, running off

Aomine laughed at her reaction. Teasing her would never get old.

* * *

A small sigh escaped Airi's lips as she sunk in the hot water. Momoi joined her soon, hair tied in a ponytail. The pinkette had been told of her childhood friend's strange behavior, and had explained to Airi that she shouldn't worry about it.

The brunette knew she would need some time to forget about it. She had to, otherwise she would totally screw up in their last two games, _if _they were able to make it that far that is.

She couldn't quite get it out of her head though. The feel of his skin, his warmth, his face, his breath hot against her ear. . . Airi squeaked and immersed herself further into the water.

Momoi turned to her, surprised. "Is something the matter, Airi-chan?"

"Y-Yes."

"Let me guess. You can't forget about it, can you?"

"Not exactly."

"Here, let's talk about our upcoming games for a change."

* * *

Meanwhile, with the boys

* * *

"Yo, Ku, stand up a little more."

"I'm trying to but you're heavy as fuck man!"

"I still don't know why you guys even bother trying," Imayoshi sighed at his kouhais' behavior.

"You won't succeed."

Aomine rolled his eyes and tried to look over the fence separating them from the girls' hot springs, only to have something thrown at his face. He fell off Ku's shoulders, who was thankful, and landed quite loudly.

* * *

Momoi's and Airi's heads snapped towards the fence only to see Seirin's coach walking towards them, seemingly proud.

"Those peeps, they deserved it." She took a sit next to Airi, who gulped nervously and shot a glance at the pinkette next to her. Momoi gave her an encouraging smile.

"Y-You must be R-Riko Aida?"

"I am. And you must be Hogiwara Airi?"

"H-Hai."

"Nice to meet you Airi-kun. No need to be so shy."

"Airi-chan is usually shy around new people," Momoi interrupted.

"I wasn't talking to you."

"You just did flat chest."

"Mind repeating that?"

Airi sensed a quarrel coming up and honestly, she wasn't in the mood for it. She stood up, wrapped a towel around herself and exited the hot springs, deciding all she needed was some time to herself. She recuperated her clothes, changed and headed for the court.

She was happy to see Sakurai sitting there, a can of soda in his hand. He looked up when he heard her footsteps and smiled shyly.

"Airi-chan. Long time no see."

"Hai hai. How have you been?"

"Pretty good. Yourself?"

"Just a little tired. Otherwise I am good as well."

Airi picked up the basketball and dribbled, standing a certain distance away from the net before she shot. It circled the rim a few times before going in. Sakurai stood up and held his hand out. She passed him the ball. He ran to a spot further behind her and released the ball; it went flawlessly through the net.

That gave the brown haired girl an idea. "Ryou-kun, I might have an idea for a new technique."

Sakurai grinned. "You and me, just like old times?"

"Yes coach."

* * *

I'll just leave you guys in suspense here as to what the new 'technique' is. So since I am out of school (for like a week now) I will try to update quickly. I know I've written that plenty of times but this time I am honest. And if I don't, it's because I have a lot going on. So gomenasai in advance.


	20. Chapter 20

Oh my god guys! Where do I start? Thank you so much for supporting this fan fiction! I am seriously overwhelmed right now.

Song I listened to: Hold me down by Halsey.

* * *

Airi woke up, extremely sore. She had spent a good half of the night training with Sakurai intensively. It had completely worn her out, and her muscles protested every time she tried to get up. In the end she gave up and simply lay there.

Momoi noticed her struggle and couldn't help but giggle. "Need help?"

"Nope, I'm good."

"Are you sure?"

"No. . ."

Momoi giggled some more and helped her friend up. Airi thanked her and dug through her clothes. She settled for sweatpants and a sweatshirt since it was pretty cold. She let Momoi shower first and, despite her aching body, she went down to the reception to order breakfast, forgetting she was still in pajamas.

"Um, hello?"

The receptionist looked up and smiled at Airi's current state. Messy bed hair, wrinkled clothes, tired eyes.

"May I know what you usually serve for breakfast?" she asked, yawning.

"You can have broiled eggs, bacon, pancakes, if you want with added sushi, as well as some juice and—"

"Great, I'll have all of that."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise but didn't question her and nodded politely. Airi made her way back to their bedroom. Maybe a warm bath would do the trick. Halfway there, she bumped into none other than Aomine, who had seemingly just woken up.

"M-Morning Aomine-kun," she said, half tiredly and half shyly.

"'Mornin'," he replied lazily, ruffling her hair before walking away.

Airi watched him leave, a little confused then left as well, for she was standing in the middle of the hallway like a total idiot. When she was back in the room, she found Momoi searching through her own clothes. Without a word, Airi locked the bathroom door. A few minutes later, she had fallen asleep in the tube.

A good breakfast later, the two girls were out and about. Momoi wanted to go shopping. Airi had nothing better to do and didn't want to go shopping. Crowded places weren't exactly her thing so she made up a lie.

Now she had free time to herself, and no idea in mind. How convenient.

She stuffed her hands in the pockets of her sweatshirt and took step after step. Perhaps a little walk would help her clear her mind.

The cold atmosphere air caused her nose and cheeks to turn cherry pink. Great. Why did it have to be so cold?

With no other choice, she sighed and headed for the court. Might as well try to practice a bit.

Airi picked up the cold basketball and bounced it, eyes fixing the net firmly. She let out a breath, which transformed to smoke as soon as it mangled with the cold air. She crouched, getting ready to charge.

"If practice makes perfect, then practice it is."

That's when a hand snatched her up by her collar. Airi struggled to get out of whoever's grip it was. "Aomine-kun, I thought we were done arguing."

She realized it couldn't be Aomine when she took notice of how high up she was. Next thing she knew there was a set of lavender eyes staring at her. Oh no. The least she needed right now was a certain purple haired giant picking on her.

"Muro-chin, look who I found," Murasakibara said, glaring at the poor girl.

Airi gulped and began trying to negotiate with him. "C-Could you please l-let me down? I. . . Have a. . . Umm. . . F-Fear of heights?"

It came out more as a question rather than a statement. Murasakibara frowned at her and shook her.

"Atsushi, no need to frighten her like that. Let her down."

The giant reluctantly set her down. Airi scrambled to her feet and turned around to thank Himuro. The black haired boy smiled his signature charming smile.

"Sorry about him. He's still upset about losing."

"That's alright, I understand." She dared take a look at Murasakibara, who had opened a bag of chips to munch on. Put apart how scary he could be, Airi found he was simply a childish boy. Some people never grow up.

"So, were you two going to practice?"

"Hai hai, but since you were here before—"

"No, no it's alright. I was actually waiting for a friend, but since he's not coming, I guess I'll go search for him."

Himuro crossed his arms. Anyone could see right through the lie. However, he _did _appreciate her move.

"That's very kind of you. Thanks."

"No problem." She left the two, beginning to regret not goin to the mall with Momoi. That's when she realized something. Three lies in the same day. Three. Freaking. Lies. She had never lied so much before.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Airi recognized the voice and slowly, very slowly, turned around. It was quite awkward, since she still couldn't get yesterday's incident out of her head. It was practically taunting her. "N-Nowhere particular, why?"

"Satsuki just called and ask me to keep an eye on you. Apparently, your lie wasn't very convincing."

"Gee, am I really that bad at lying?" Airi rubbed the back of her neck, face heating up.

"Yes, you kind of are."

She puffed her cheeks. No need to rub it in.

"Come on, there's an arcade somewhere around. You'll love it."

"I don't know if I should."

Aomine shrugged, grabbed her arm and got in the process of dragging her away. Considering she didn't weigh that much, it was easy. Airi simply let him drag her away. She was used to it anyway.

Aomine was right when he said she would love the arcade. Not too crowded, spacious, well lit. She might not look like it, but Airi was a big fan of video games. Aomine couldn't help feel amused when he saw her running here and there. What a hyper little being she could be.

He offered to play a multi-player game against her which he, eventually, ended up winning. After all, he always won. It didn't bother Airi because she had fun.

* * *

Two and a half hours later, the two were heading back. Airi was cheerfully skipping besides Aomine. He would occasionally glance down at her, smiling. He had never seen her this happy, and, honestly, it was pretty contagious.

"Want to go get some lunch now?" he asked.

"Mhm," came the hummed reply.

He asked her to wait in the hall as he headed straight to the food court. He came back with two bowls. Fried rice with vegetables, some fish, mushrooms and sauce. The two sat on one of the benches outside. Airi gulped down her food while it was still hot.

"Don't eat so fast Airi," Aomine said. "You'll get a stomach ache."

"It's too good."

When she was done, she put the empty aluminum-wrapped bowl aside and simply stared at her feet, wiggling them around. Aomine finished eating and threw the bowls in a trash.

It was currently five, meaning they'd spent quite some time in the arcade. Momoi should be back any minute.

"Did you have fun?" he asked, finding the silence unsettling.

"I did. I hope we can do this again soon." She looked at him with the most genuine smile one could think of.

Aomine didn't understand why his stomach felt funny all of a sudden. He narrowed his eyes and ruffled her hair, rolling his eyes. "You should seriously get a haircut soon. Your hair is growing way too fast."

"I know. Planning on it."

No words were exchanged from then on. Airi felt tired but content. Her eyes slowly shut close as she leaned onto Aomine's arm. He sighed and let her be until Momoi came up to them. She took about ten or more pictures of them before the tanned boy got annoyed and told her to show him to their room.

"You're not allowed though."

"Satsuki, you know fair well I dislike rules. And I'm most definitely not staying here with her in my arms."

Momoi smirked down at Airi's sleeping figure being carried by Aomine. "You two look so cute together."

"Shut up and show me the room."

* * *

Someone requested some AoRi fluff. (Just made a ship name. Oh how smart I am.) Well, I went for that. Not really sure whether this should be an AominexAiri fanfic though.

Until next time!

~AHAL


	21. Chapter 21

Songs I listened to before and while writing: I'd love to change the world by Jutta (it's a remix.) and Stitches.

I am so freaking happy right now. Seeing more and more people supporting this story is just so... Ugh I am speechless.

* * *

The next two days went by pretty fast. Airi, after she'd gotten a haircut, continued to practice with Sakurai and hung out with him for the rest of the time. Occasionally, she would also spend some time with Aomine, who, strangely, was being a little too nice. Not only to her, but to the rest of his teammates as well.

No one complained, however, and went along with it. After all, it wasn't not every day that Aomine was nice. He soon seemed to take notice of his sudden change of comportment and went back to his usual, harsh self.

It was their last day. The team had packed up and was waiting for the bus, and Aomine, who had probably woken up late. The Fukusu trio were chuckling in between themselves. That usually meant they were up to no good.

When Aomine finally showed up, grumpy, the rest of the team finally understood and burst out laughing. Fu, Ku and Su had drawn all over his face with markers. The tanned boy, confused, glared at the three brothers, silently threatening them.

During the ride, he finally figured out why everyone had been laughing at him, thanks to his reflection in one of the windows. He had to admit that his face was worthy of mockery.

Airi was settled comfortably in the back, reading a book while listening to music, a half finished granola bar in her other hand. She ate the rest, crumpled the wrapper and slipped it in her pocket before turning a page of her book. Captivated as she was, she didn't notice Ku staring at her from the seat in front of her.

"Hi there."

She couldn't hear him. The music was a little too loud. Ku reached over and patted her shoulder. Airi lowered the volume and looked up at him questioningly.

"So what's happening between you and Aomine?"

She nearly choked on her own saliva, eyes widening in disbelief. "N-Nothing! W-What makes you say that?"

Ku showed her a picture on his phone. It was one of Aomine with Airi sleeping in his arms. What in the world. . .

Airi felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment. She slipped the hood of her sweater over her head and pulled on the strings to tighten it. Ku narrowed his eyes but didn't insist.

Once she was sure he was gone, Airi emerged from her 'shell' and let out a sigh, brushing her hair with her fingers.

Lately, Aomine has been having a weird effect on her, if you could call it that. She had come to the all-too-scary conclusion that she, unfortunately (or fortunately), had developed a crush on him. And that wasn't good.

The brown haired girl had heard of girls falling in love, and not being able to do anything other than think about their 'soul mate'. She didn't want that. If anything, her main concern was successfully graduating and getting into a good college.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed Aomine sitting next to her. "Watcha thinking about airhead?"

Airi slowly turned her head around and gave him a nervous smile. "Oh nothing much. Just school I guess."

"School?"

"Yeah. Don't you ever think about graduating? And what you'll do in the future?"

"Not really."

Airi blinked as she watched Aomine scratch the back of his neck. What was he waiting for? They only had about a year left.

She cleared her throat. "I see. If you need help finding a good college, I'll be waiting."

* * *

Airi was more than joyful when her dad was the first one to welcome her back home. She had missed him more than ever, and was planning on spending as much time with him as possible.

She told him about their games, their wins, and their trip. The older Hogiwara was happy for his daughter. For her to tell him about her journey with so much enthusiasm meant she was truly enthralled with basketball. He promised he'd go watch her game on Monday.

Feeling ten times lighter, Airi called Sakurai to tell him about the events that had recently occurred before asking him if he was too busy. She wanted to train some more. He agreed to go to the court next to his house.

She hung up, letting out a sigh. These next few days were going to be hectic and exhausting, with Aomine, her dad and the new technique she had to develop under a delay of two days. Barely.

"Let's get to work."

* * *

Monday

* * *

Today, Too academy was playing against Seirin high. There was a great amount of stress in each team. Excitement and dread was thick in the atmosphere as the fans watched the current ongoing game.

"We're next," Momoi said.

Airi's legs were bouncing out of control. The thing was, Sakurai and her hadn't had enough time to practice yesterday because he had to go over at his aunt's. She was well aware of the fact that her family was here, and would be watching her play. She couldn't screw up.

Aomine, on the other hand, was sitting in his corner, all pumped up. Seirin had won against them the year before, and he wasn't about to let then win a second time. No, this time, he was getting revenge.

"What's with all this tension? Relax," Too's team captain said.

Airi let out a sigh and checked the time. They were up in two minutes. She took off her glasses, carefully placing them in her bag, and put in contact lenses. She brushed her bangs to the side and silently counted to thirty to calm her racing heart. When she was sure she could think of the game without the organ bursting, she let her mind roam freely to the Seirin aces.

This game was going to be tough.

"Let's go!"

They all stood up and got in line, walking out of the locker room to the court. The roaring of the spectators was overwhelming. This was what they had been waiting for.

Airi felt a surge of bravery overcome her. "We'll do great, I just know it," she said, loud enough for her teammates to hear her.

They nodded in acknowledgment. Aomine snorted and lightly hit her upside the head. "Do your best, Airi."

Airi smiled. "Hai hai."

* * *

Okay okay. Seirin against Too. Prepare for an intense battle ya'll. Until next time!

~AHAL


	22. Update

Hey guys! Sorry if you thought this would be an update. Well, I am working on it, though it might take longer than expected, considering I have a lot to do lately before back to school, which is August 31st. (And my birthday is September 6th, yay :D )

But anyway, I promise I will try to bring you the next chapter as soon as possible. Thank you for putting up with me.


	23. Chapter 22

AlrightAlrightAlrightAlright! (Pewdiepie reference XD)

Sorry I kept you guys waiting sooooooooooo long. So this is the last chapter. Next up is the epilogue or something like that. Hope you enjoy! :D

Song I listened to while writing this: Firestone by Kygo.

* * *

"Shit," Airi cursed under her breath.

Momoi, who was near her, gasped. It was rare for Airi to curse, and hearing her do so was a shocker. "Excuse me?"

"G-Gomen! I just. . ." The tallest of the two sighed. The game has begun not too long ago, and she was benched to save up energy for the third quarter. So far, the score was 5 to 5 and watching Kuroko and Kagami playing reminded her of something she had unfortunately forgotten about.

"I was supposed to study their way of playing but. . ." she trailed off.

Momoi gave her a sympathetic look.

"On the other hand, I can do it now, though I most likely won't have much time." Airi searched the crowd and found her family watching the game eagerly. She hoped that what she'd learned would be enough to impress them. She had worked harder than ever before, seeing as she was given little time. Sakurai had been extremely patient, and told her what she did right and wrong.

Coach Harasawa had requested a time out halfway through the second quarter. Airi and Momoi had a hunch it was because of Aomine's behavior. From the beginning of the game, he had been holding back. Seirin was now in the lead with 18 to 13.

"Aomine, I know you do not want to play without Hogiwara, but at least try to get us in the lead. Remember the last time we let Seirin have an advantage on us?"

He kept his head bowed down, deep in thought. Harasawa shook his head and had Su replace Aomine. It was for the best.

Meanwhile, Airi tried to keep focused on the game and not on Aomine's motionless figure.

Wakamatsu was going all out on the opponents, a clear sign he was pissed. That was not good at all. If anything, Wakamatsu wasn't supposed to be giving it his all so soon. It was an unnecessary waste of energy.

Airi's breath caught when she felt Aomine stare at her. He was scrutinizing her, jaw locked, focused on every detail of her facial features. She shifted slightly. "D-Do you need something?"

He didn't respond and instead, stood up and went to talk to the coach. Momoi, who'd followed him with her pink orbs, frowned, suspicious. There was a heated discussion between Harasawa and Aomine until they finally came to an agreement.

Aomine returned and motioned for his partner to get to her feet. "You're playing now."

Airi felt her mouth go dry and tried to protest, but their coach requested a time out right then, switching a tired yet pissed Wakamatsu with her. The brunette gazed over at the tanned boy, shocked when she saw him sit back down. Was he going to make her play alone?

"Hogiwara! Move on!" Harasawa shouted.

She recovered quickly and sputtered an apology, jogging over to the court. All eyes were trained on her, and Airi did her best not to pay them any attention.

"So you're playing alone, huh? Interesting." Kagami placed his hands on his hips, and Airi put on her best determined expression, finally understanding the situation.

The red hair and Aomine must have had a disagreement about her while she wasn't looking, so he decided to send her out there to prove she could play on her own. Without Aomine's help.

The referee blew the whistle. Imayoshi passed the ball to Su. He full on rushed towards the opposite hoop, and Airi had to give him props for dodging the Seirin members so nimbly. However, he was kept from dunking as Kagami and Hyuga surrounded him. Su gritted his teeth and, locating Airi, passed her the ball.

The young girl caught it and took a step forward. Almost immediately, she felt an unwanted shiver run down her back. Within the blink of an eye, Kuroko had pushed the ball out of her grip.

* * *

The rest of the game went back and forth like that. There were four minutes left in fourth quarter and Airi still hadn't scored any points at all. She was able to track Kuroko's presence next to her, but was always too late in passing the ball to someone else.

To make it worse, Aomine still wasn't participating.

Airi wanted to just give up already. It was clear the Phantom Sixth man was stronger than her. They were on their last time out. Airi was about to declare she didn't want to play anymore when something caught her eye from the spectators side. She looked up and saw Kira standing up, holding up a banner with the words "You can do it Airi!" written on it.

Airi swallowed her words back and stared at her sister, who was giving her a thumbs up. It was all the motivation she needed.

The game resumed. Seirin was in the lead with 75 to 69. Airi exhaled shakily and glanced at Sakurai. He nodded. Airi motioned for Susa to give her the ball. Kagami and Izuki cornered her, not too tightly though. It was clear they were giving Kuroko space.

"Not this time," Airi muttered under her breath.

As usual, shivers ran down her back. However, she spun around, causing Kuroko to stumble. Koganei was the first to recover and block her way, seeing as she was so close to the net. Airi focused entirely on her objective, blocking out the entirety of the outside world.

She hopped. Koganei jumped, arm raised in order to stop her. Airi landed and quickly rounded him, jumping this time and spinning once around a vertical axe before dunking the ball. She gripped onto the rim for a while then let go, taking a few steps back to regain her balance.

"Holy shit. . ."

Everyone was in disbelief. Airi felt proud of herself and high-fived Sakurai as she jogged over to her position. Aomine smirked. He knew she could do it. Even if they lost today, he at least won something worth more than any trophy.

Effectively, Seirin won with 96 to 95. The two teams bowed to thank each other for the game and each left to go to their locker rooms. Midway out, Aomine stopped Airi by holding onto her shoulder, causing her to turn around. Kagami and Kuroko were standing in front of them, looking stern.

"So?" Aomine asked.

Kagami directed his red orbs on Airi, who was frozen on her spot. "You've got one hell of a shadow right there."

The Too ace smirked and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "What'd I tell you?"

"I suppose Aomine-kun has finally found passion in basketball again," Kuroko said.

"You bet I have." He was grinning like a complete idiot.

Riko called Kagami and Kuroko, telling them to hurry up.

"You two, Kuroko and I. Two on two."

"Anytime you want," Airi found herself saying.

The two Seirin aces left. Aomine tugged Airi along.

The young girl broke the silence by asking, "Aren't you upset we lost?"

"Why would I be upset?" Aomine squeezed her shoulder, and Airi felt butterflies erupting in her stomach.

"You played well, and that's enough of a victory for me."

* * *

Two weeks later

* * *

It had been a week ever since the Too vs Seirin game. Airi had let her hair grow back, refusing to cut it again. She spent more and more time with Aomine and Momoi. The boy seemed to have taken a liking to her.

Truth be told, Aomine hadn't expected to fall for Airi. It wasn't unpleasant though, simply weird.

Momoi was aware they both had feelings for each other, and she was determined on bringing them together. She even had a list of ideas on how to do that.

It was a particularly cold day, and the three were spending their lunch time together at the gym. It brought back many memories. As they finished eating their bentos, Momoi excused herself, saying she had to use the restroom.

Airi and Aomine were left alone, at the hands of fate. The young girl fiddled nervously with her gloves for a good five minutes, until she heard her partner shifting. She rose her head only to see Aomine's mere centimeters away from hers. Airi sucked in a breath.

Aomine's usually droopy eyes were wide open this time, inspecting her features. He lifted her head up with his index finger, his thumb pressed against her chin, and finally closed the gap between them. Aomine's lips were cold, in contrast to Airi's warm ones. It was a pleasant contrast, and the both of them craved for more as their eyelids fluttered shut.

Airi tangled her fingers in Aomine's wild hair, whereas his hands snaked to her waist. He pulled back, allowing the both of them to offer their lungs much needed air. Aomine smiled tenderly at her and pecked her lips.

"First kiss?"

"Yes. And I do not regret it."

He laughed and lifted his head as a blinding light suddenly flashed. The both whipped their heads around to see Momoi standing in the entrance, her phone held up.

"Just wait until the rest of the team sees this," she said, running off.

"Satsuki-kun!" Airi shouted, ready to chase after her.

Aomine held her back by tightening his grasp on her waist and pulling her flush against his chest, hugging her. "Let her be. It was bound to happen anyway, don't you agree?"

Airi sighed and buried her face in his chest. "I love you," she unconsciously said.

When she realized what she said, she apologized and stuttered.

"I love you too dork," Aomine chuckled.

Airi relaxed in his grasp. Suddenly, she realized just how happy she was to have joined Too Academy. How happy she was to have met Aomine. And how lucky she was to have him in her life.

* * *

Awwwww. Well, this is the end. Unfortunately, it was back to school for me this Monday, meaning I won't have time to write more fanfics. Though I might post one whenever I get free time. Until then, see you guys sometime in the future. (Hey that should be my new catch phrase).

~AHAL


	24. Update 2

Hey guys!

As of lately I've been wading my way through homework and projects and whatnot. On top of that I'm planning on writing a Naruto fanfiction (hooray for those of you who like Naruto) so that explains my inactivity on here. Anyway I've been receiving lots of requests to make a one-shot/omake with more AoRi (Aomine and Airi.) So I thought, why not?

I have two suggestions for you. I could either:

-make a one-shot where Momoi shows the picture she took to the rest of the team

or

-make a one-shot where Aomine and Airi bump into Kuroko and Kagami (if you chose that just know it might be mostly humoristic.)

Leave your requests in the comments (or via PMs). You have until May 7th.

Until next time~


	25. Chapter 24

This might contain OCCness. You were warned. Also, read the AN at the end.

Momoi stared at the picture on her phone. It had been a week since she'd taken it, and she still didn't know whether to send it or not. Aomine had threatened her a few times not to send it to his old teammates, whatever she did. Hell, God knows how much Kise would bother him about it. And Airi... Well, the brunette had begged her not to show it to anyone at all. But from time to time it is okay to be evil, right?

Momoi flipped onto her stomach, laying her head on one of the pillows, weighing the pros and cons. Throwing caution to the wind, she sent it to the Too team, and the Generation of Miracles, asking Kuroko to make sure Kagami got an insight as well. This promised to be interesting.

* * *

"Airi. Give it to me."

"No."

Aomine narrowed his eyes as his girlfriend held the bento protectively against her chest. Despite the fact he'd had his own lunch, he was still hungry, and considering the amount of potato chips (her new-found obsession) Airi had eaten in this very instant he doubted she were hungry. So why wouldn't she give him her bento already?

"I'll only say this one last time. Airi, food, now." He sat up slowly, as poised as a spring ready to uncoil without a warning.

"N-No," she repeated stubbornly though her anxiousness was made obvious by her stuttering.

"Very well."

Before she could blink, Airi found herself being held by strong arms. The next thing she was aware of were the fingers tickling her sides. She burst out laughing, instantly dropping the object in her arms as she twisted around, attempting to free herself from the torture.

"St-Stop, please!"

"Will you listen to me next time?"

"Y-Yes!"

With a triumphant smirk, Aomine let her go, not without one quick kiss to the temple. With a blush Airi crossed her arms, huffing. Once again, he had won. Once again, she had lost. But who was she to complain? Either way she could never say no to him for long fractions of minutes.

"We better get going. Break will be over soon," she declared, standing up.

"Mm, we have practice."

"Yep."

With a groan, he stood up as well and followed her down the stairs and into the gymnasium, where the team was gathered around Sakurai, seemingly staring at something on his phone. As soon as the couple made their appearance their heads rose. Fu had a disturbingly wide grin.

"So." He wrapped his arms around himself and began emiting smooching noises. They guffawed, and even Sakurai was laughing.

Airi stiffened.

Momoi couldn't have possibly... She wouldn't dare, would she?

Judging by the incredible amount of attention the two were getting, she had.

"Oh. My. GOD!"

Airi let out a yelp as an arm wrapped around her neck, not ready to let go. Kise was grinning like an idiot as he constantly glanced between the young girl and his old teammate.

"I called it from the beginning!" Takao shouted.

Aomine groaned mentally. He knew he shouldn't have trusted Momoi. Now look at where she had gotten them. The Generation of Miracles were here specially for this seemingly important event. It was just a kiss. One damn kiss.

"I've gotta say I'm not surprised by this." Kagami leaned against the wall. "The way you defended her during the Winter Cup was enough proof."

"Congratulations, Daiki."

Aomine's eyebrow twitched._ Stay calm, don't lash out_, he told himself mentally, trying to keep from smacking that smug look off Akashi's face. Kuroko appeared besides Midorima, staring at the scene just like the green haired player, both smirking on the inside.

Airi was shaking not from fear, but from embarrassment. She unconsciously tugged at Aomine's shirt; he pulled her into his arms in a comforting embrace.

Kise squealed. "This is so cute!"

"So you aren't such a cold-hearted bastard after all, are you?" Kagami chuckled and casually slapped Aomine's back.

_Stay calm, don't lash out. _

"Hey, let's see if we can get them to kiss again!" Wakamatsu suggested.

_Stay. Calm. Don't- _

"Hello minna!"

"Satsuki!" His head immediately snapped towards Momoi, who instantly ran off with him hot on her heels, giggling all the while.

All eyes were now on Airi. She gulped down nervously and slowly inched towards the door. Aomine's hand shot out, grabbed hers and pulled her out the gym.

"We'll get many more occasions to tease them," Imayoshi said.

"No, I want to tease Aomine now. Come on Kuroko!" Kagami dragged his teammate behind him.

Takao, Kise, Wakamatsu went after them. Midorima shook his head and left under the pretext he needed to keep an eye on Takao. Akashi made his exit shortly after as well.

"Captain, should we stop them?" Sakurai asked.

"No, leave them be. We'll get to see them soon anyway."

* * *

Tada! The second option was the most popular so here you go.

Sorry this took so long, it's exam season for me. Only three weeks left, but I still have so much to do.

Anyway, I do not intend to add to this story any further, seeing as I'm already working on another one (do I have any Naruto fans out there?). It was nice writing about Airi, believe me. And a big thanks to all the fans who've stayed with me and supported A New Girl. It means a lot.

Until next time~

L&amp;L


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